Confidence Trick
by 66sixx
Summary: They say that honesty is the best policy. Dana Andrews followed this adage to the letter. But when he receives an invitation to something called the Confidence Trick, those very words are put to the ultimate test. Concept based on Liar Game. [COMPLETED] August 28, 2011 - June 29, 2014
1. A Note

My name is Dana Andrews, People say I'm the nicest man they know. Others say I can't tell a lie. They say that honesty is the best policy. And for 20 years, I lived my life around those words. But after coming back from an economics class one Friday evening, my life's sole principle would be tested for the first time.

I open the door, everything looks exactly the way I left it. Everything, except that there is now a note on my desk. I pick up the note and read it.

Hello, Dana Andrews,

You have gained the right to participate in the Confidence Trick. This opportunity is presented to only one in every 50,000 people. By reading this note, you have signified your irrevocable interest in this event. You could make hundreds of thousands, perhaps even millions of dollars over the course of this Confidence Trick. At 20:30, a limousine will take you to the site of what could be the turning point of your life. We wish for your success!

-CTI

I look at the clock. 20:28. _They'll be here in two minutes!_

I start to think about all the things I could do with the money. _Will I donate it to charity? Share it with my friends? If I had that much money, the rest of my life would be smooth sailing. No, I shouldn't spend it on myself.-_

*knock* "Is Dana Andrews in there?"

"Yeah, I'll be right out." I tie one last knot in my shoelaces and open the door.

"Mr. Andrews, please follow us." The two men in black suits escort me to a limo. I open the door, click on my seat belt and close the door.

"Look at the other seat to your left." One of the men instructs me. I see a suitcase.

"Open it." I flip the suitcase open. There appear to be ten thousand $100 bills.

"A-A million dollars? Is this real?"

"All ten thousand bank notes are real U.S. legal tender. No counterfeits."

"So... why is it here?"

"We'll talk about that when we get there. Right now just sit tight and relax, you could get a lot of money."


	2. Life or Death

In fifteen short minutes, we arrive at the venue, an old hotel.

"Mr. Andrews, we have arrived at the destination. Take your case with you into the building." I leave the vehicle with case in hand. The blacksuits escort me into the hotel. I see a line of people waiting at the check-in desk, each accompanied by someone in a black suit. One by one, they trade in cases for what look like poker chips. Finally, i am the next in line. I take my case containing one million dollars to the man at the check-in desk. He puts the case under the desk and in exchange gives me ten poker chips each worth the engraved value, $100,000.

"You will be in room 132." the check-in man says. The suits lead me to the door to room 132. One turns to me and says "Your opponent is waiting."

"Opponent?"

"Sorry, no questions until we say so." I am taken inside the room.

"Sorry to keep you waiting, Ms. Black." The other blacksuit tells me that "This is your opponent for tonight, Gordi Black."

"Professor Black? What are you doing here?"

"I had just as much chance as you." she tells me. I am about to ask her another question when a blacksuit interrupts our conversation.

"Attention, may I have your attention, please?" He continued. "Thank you. Congratulations, The two of you are among the lucky few selected for participation in the Confidence Trick. Each of you has been given ten gambling tokens valued at $100,000 each. Please have them on the table in front of you now." Both of us place our ten chips on the table. The announcer continues. "I will be the croupier for tonight's game. Right now, you each have ten chips each worth $100,000. I will now distribute the other materials required for tonight." Each of us gets a set of cards. Some have a picture of a hand, others have just a number. The announcer continues once again. "Right now you should also have twenty-two cards. four with a closed fist and the letter 'R', four with two fingers stuck out and the letter 'S', four with an open hand and the letter 'P', three with the number '1', three with the number '2', two with the number '3' and two with the number four. Please check to see that you have these cards." Both of us lay our cards on the table to count how many of each there were. Each of us turned out to have the announced number of cards.

"I will now explain the rules of this game."

- Each player splits their twenty-two cards into twelve "signs" and ten "numbers". These two separate groups of cards are to remain separate.

-Each player discards 3 signs. The discards will be collected by the croupier.

-Each player announces how many chips they wish to wager and lays down a number with that number on it, face up. The wager for that round will be determined as follows; a) if the numbers are identical, then that number is used as the wager; b) if the numbers are different and the sum is odd, then the odd number is used as the wager; c) if the numbers are different and the sum is even, then the average is used for the wager.

-The two players must place a number of chips equal to the round's wager; if a player does not have enough chips, then their opponent need only equal the bet.

-The players have two minutes to place a sign face down. During this time, the players can freely communicate.

-The two signs are then turned face up; rock defeats scissors, scissors defeats paper and paper defeats rock. If both players play the same sign, then the round is a draw.

-The winning player takes all of the chips at stake for that round. In the case of a draw, then those chips remain at risk for the next round. If the last round ends in a draw, the players split the chips equally.

-This game lasts for eight rounds.

-If at any point, either player accumulates twenty chips, the game immediately stops.

-The number of remaining signs and numbers of each kind as well as the number of chips each player has will be displayed.

-The winner will be the player with more chips at the end of the game.

-If any cheating should occur, then the offender will instantly lose the game with a score of 20-0 to their opponent.

-Win or lose, the chips are exchanged for cash at face value.

-After the game, both players must repay $1 million. Please note that we will do whatever is necessary to collect outstanding debts

-The winner is given a choice, to continue in the Confidence Trick for a chance at even more money, or to withdraw and forfeit half of the winnings from this game.

"Are there any questions?"

"Yes." I respond. "Define "whatever is necessary".

"Just that. We will do whatever is necessary to collect outstanding debts."

"Another question." I reply.

"Ask."

"Why are we playing this game?"

"We have not lied to either of you yet. We have given you both an opportunity to gain large sums of cash. Don't tell me you are throwing it away. Forfeiture begets a 20-0 loss. Any more questions?"

"No."

"Then let the first part of this Confidence Trick begin!"

How did I get myself into this? How did I get myself into this life-or-death situation? If I lose...


	3. She Lied!

If I lose, … I'll be hit with one million dollars in debt. What will they do? Will I be a slave? Will I pay with my body? I don't know what will happen. All I know... is that I have to win. I have to win!

"Please discard three signs."

I look at my twelve signs. Four rock, four paper, four scissors. It doesn't take me long to decide to throw away one of each sign. Three paper, three rock, three scissors. Professor Black lays down three of her signs.

"Select your wager."

I look at my numbers. I can wager any number between 1 and 4. Let's test the waters. 2.

"Reveal your wagers." I reveal a 2, my opponent shows a 3.

"The wager for this round is three chips. Please place three chips in the center of the table." The two of us throw in three chips. Six hundred thousand dollars are up for grabs.

"Your two minutes start now."

"Dana, do you think they're actually telling the truth? Do you really think this game is real?" Professor Black asks me.

"They haven't lied to us yet. They wouldn't lie now that we've started."

"Once these eight rounds are over, no matter who wins, neither of us will end up with a single cent."

"Huh, explain."

"The money will be secretly 'stolen' by someone who works for Confidence Trick Inc.. Whoever loses this game will drown in debt. But the winner will be told that they cannot be paid due to a thief. Both players will leave with no more than what they came in with."

"So, why are you telling me this?"

"Dana, let's play to a draw, 10-10. We'll get out of this game and nobody will have to pay a cent. It can't fail. All eight rounds will end in a draw and we'll each get ten chips back. They won't make a penny."

"Good idea. We don't want to be slaves. I'm with you." In all my years in school and college, she was my favorite teacher. I knew her since the ninth grade. There was no reason not to go along with her plan.

"Let's go with paper."

"OK." With time to spare, we each laid down a sign.

"Reveal your signs." I show paper. Professor Black shows...

Scissors! _What?_

"Oh, no. I thought I said scissors. Sorry about that. I'll let you win the next round."

"Alright then, I'll play rock, you'll play scissors, we'll both play 3." I tell her.

"Fine by me."

"Round Two has started, select your wager." After a few moments, we both lay down a 3 as planned.

"The wager is three. Your two minutes start now." We throw three more chips into the center. If this goes right, we're back to square one. She inspects her card, making certain that it is indeed a scissors. She doesn't want to make another mistake. At the same time, I play my rock and she plays her scissors.

"Reveal your signs." I show rock. She shows...

_**Paper?**__ I thought we had a plan! Why throw paper? We agreed to a draw! She lied!_

"Ha ha ha ha ha …"

"You lied!"

"You don't get it? Do you know why they call this the Confidence Trick? To stay alive, you gotta pull a few of your own! I'll take your million without breaking a sweat! You were just tricked oh... so... easily, Dana." _Damn! I'm down $600 thousand. What am I going to do? I'm literally two steps away from being sold into slavery or worse, butchered alive. My heart races, I sweat bullets. I have to find my way out of this mess. I have to win somehow. There's still six rounds left, but we might not even play three. If I can't win back those chips, my life is over._

"Round Three has started..."


	4. Back in the Game

"Select your wager." I hesitate for a moment. After taking a moment to think, I pull a 2 out of my hand and play it. Black plays a 4, hoping to extend her lead. The croupier announces the wager.

"The wager is three!. You have two minutes to play a sign." I throw three chips in with my opponent's and review my options. Two rock, two paper and three scissors. Black has already played paper and scissors. She hasn't played a rock yet. Wait, she could be trying to get me to play paper. Well, I'll show her. I lay my sign down. She lays her sign down with a grimace.

"Reveal your signs." the croupier announces. At the same time, we both show a rock. "This round is a draw." The six chips remain at the center of the table, Black has thirteen, I have only one.

"Round Four has started. Select your wager." I have only one chip left. It takes me no time at all to wager my last chip. Needless to say, Black also lays down a 1, throwing in a chip of her own.

"The wager for this round is one. You now have two minutes to play a sign." This round is critical. If I lose this round, it's all over for me. I start to think. My thoughts go into a circle. She might be trying to get me to play rock in the belief that she'll play scissors. But if I play scissors thinking it'll meet paper, she could play rock herself. My mind loops in this manner until I see that I only have one rock left. She thinks I'll save it for later. She'll consider playing scissors, but she'll rethink her strategy in an endless loop just like I did. Just before time runs out, we both play the signs that each of us believe will win us this round.

"Time's up! Reveal your signs." The moment of truth arrives. My life is hanging to the turn of a card. We reveal our signs.

Scissors. A surprised look enters her face. She flips over her card.

Paper. I won this round. Now, there was a chance for me to survive. I take the eight chips from the central pile. Twelve to eight. I was behind, but back in the game.


	5. People Can't Be Trusted

I was back in the game. Four rounds down, four rounds left. I had eight chips, Professor Black had twelve. Our game was halfway to completion.

"Round Five has started. Select your wager." I decide to go all out with a 4. Black thinks for a moment, then shows a 2.

"The wager is three. You now have two minutes."

"Dana, let me tell you something."

"What do you want to tell me, Professor Black?"

"People... cannot be trusted..."

"Huh?"

"You can't trust other people. You just can't."

"What could be so bad about trust in others?" I ask.

"I was like you. I trusted people the minute I met them. But I lost that faith."

"What happened?"

"I got a letter telling me I could literally multiply my money. In the letter was a list of names. It was a matter of mailing five thousand dollars with the letter to be forwarded to the person whose name was at the top of the list, copying the letter twice, crossing out the name at the top of the list, adding my own name at the bottom and mailing the copies to two different people. I would have gotten eighty thousand dollars. But the people who sent the letter stopped paying up. I never got my money back, no charges were even made. I missed a few payments, and then, everyone saw me as dead weight, then I got a note telling me about this Confidence Trick. Two people came into my house and I decided that there is indeed a god." She lays down a sign as soon as she is finished.

_People can't be trusted?_ I think about what Black has said to me. _People can't be trusted? _I lay down a card of my own with only a few seconds left.

"Reveal your signs." the croupier announces. We both reveal paper.

"This round is a draw." The six chips stay at the center of the table. I have five, Black has nine.

"We will now begin Round Six. Select your wager" There is already enough money at risk. I decide to wager 1. Black decides on her wager. We reveal our choices at the same time. Black revealed a 2.

"The wager is one. You will have two minutes starting now." I have two scissors, a paper and a rock. Four cards left. I think long and hard. _People can't be trusted._ I see Black play her sign. _People can't be trusted._ I take my last paper out of my hand and lay it out on the table.

"Reveal your signs." Black reveals rock. I reveal my paper and take the ten chips from the center of the table and add them to the three that I have. Two rounds remain, twelve to eight, I have the lead, I have the momentum, but I can't shake those words out of my head.

_People can't be trusted._


	6. Game Over

"Round Seven has started. Select your wager." This Confidence Trick is coming to an end. There are two rounds left. I have $1.2 million; Black has only $800,000. I need to protect my lead. Anything could happen in these last two rounds. I have one of each number. I think for a moment and play it safe with a 1. The worst case scenario is for Black to play a 3, which she doesn't have; she has two 1's a 2 and a 4. She likewise lays down a 1.

"The wager is one. You now have two minutes to play a sign." She saw me play paper three times in this game. She probably believes that I won't play paper again. I only have a rock and a scissors. A rational person would throw away one of each sign. I saw three scissors out of Black. She will play either a rock or paper. I have her next move figured out. She thinks that a rock is safe. I'll play a rock of my own and take this to the last round. I take my last rock and pit it against her third and last rock. I have this game in the bag. I take a scissors and lay it down on the table.

"Reveal your signs." Black shows a paper. "Game over, Dana!"

"Game over indeed." I show a scissors. Black is startled by her defeat.

"What the fuck? Scissors?" Black screams in shock.

"I had a feeling you would play paper against my rock, so I countered with scissors. I thought the exact things you did, except... I went a step further." Black is reduced to tears after her calculations were invalidated. She has lost...

"Now about that draw offer-"

"The eighth and final round has begun, select your wagers."

"I can force a draw, If you accept." I show Black my last two signs.

"I accept..." Black agrees and shows her last two signs. "Please, save me..." The final round saw me play a 3 against her 4. I subsequently played a scissors against her rock. The game ended dead even. Ten chips each.

The croupier and the other black suits walk us to the check out desk, where our debts were paid in full, on the mark. Neither of us won or lost any money as a result of this game. We were about to leave when the croupier made his final announcement to us.

"Congratulations, you have both made it through this game with no debt for us to collect. We have told you that the winner of this round will have a choice to end participation in this Confidence Trick. This game had no winner nor loser. Therefore, while neither of you have been eliminated, neither of you have won the choice to leave. You will both be progressing to the Second Part of this Confidence Trick. I wish you two good luck."


	7. Titanic

"...Good luck. And one last thing, you will need these." The croupier gives us identification tags bearing our names, some gibberish numbers and a clear, big number 16 on my tag and a clear big number 17 on Black's. "Now, we will escort you both to Part Two of the Confidence Trick". We are led to the other wing of the hotel into what looks like a large billiard room. There are already other people here with us. We were all waiting... waiting to see what this second part would bring.

"Good evening... I will be the croupier for this game. You may call me Steinfeld. At this moment, the second part of this Confidence Trick has begun. There are a total of 17 players. The seventeen of you will receive one million dollars, a total of seventeen million dollars. You will all compete for this $17 million in a certain game, just like Part One. If you lose, we will ask you to return your million dollars and leave. The number of players in this game will decrease, but the amount of money in the game will not change. When the dust settles, the last player in the game will get $17 million dollars. How does that sound? But since the winner must return $1 million to us, they can only receive $16 million, but, sixteen million dollars is still a lot of money. And you will be paid in cash! The seventeen of you have been selected to compete for this one time opportunity-"

"Hold up!" cries out a member of the audience.

"Yes, player 9?"

"Two things. One, where the hell is our money? Two, why do we have to lug around a case for the whole game?"

"Yes, you will be given $1 million. No, it will not be in cash. As a matter of fact, we have already given each of you a million dollars. Look at your tags. Each tag is actually a credit card containing $1 million. These credit cards will be used in this game as money. The winner will exchange his card for his prize."

"Another question here."

"Player 15, ask your question."

"Will the winner of this game have to continue to a third part?"

"No the winner will have the option of leaving or proceeding to Part Three, but in order to leave the game, the winner must pay half of his prize, $8 million."

"One more question."

"Yes, player 16."

I ask my question. "What happens if you lose?"

"Nothing special. We gave you a million dollars at the start of this game. So we will ask for it back. Giving back what you borrowed is just common sense. No?" We'll get out money back however we can." The corporation showed its true colors when they said that they would get their money back. The seventeen players in the room all showed the same thing. _Fear. _What would happen once they lost their million?

"Let me tell you what game you will be playing. I like to call it... Titanic."


	8. Dominant Factor

_There was one question on everyone's minds. What is this game called "Titanic"?_

"You know about the British ship called Titanic, don't you. The Titanic crashed into an iceberg on it's maiden voyage in 1912. Two thirds of her passengers and crew died. Here, you will compete with everyone else to get on lifeboats. Allow me to explain the rules."

- There are three differently colored lifeboats. The number of people that can fit on each lifeboat is determined by dividing the number of players in the game by 3 and rounding down. Since there are 17 people in this game, for the first round, the capacity of each lifeboat will be five people. As the number of players whittle down, the lifeboats will get smaller.

- Any lifeboats with more than the capacity will capsize and all players on that lifeboat will be eliminated and be asked to return their card to us. Any lifeboats with exactly the maximum number of players or fewer will be saved and players on those lifeboats will advance to the next round.

- If all players would be eliminated in the same round, the round is annulled.

- If the game comes down to (exactly) three players, there will be only two lifeboats to board

- The process is repeated until there are either one or two players left. The prize will be $16 million for one winner or $7.5 million for two winners.

"Does everyone understand the rules?" The croupier asks. A voice comes from the audience.

"Number 7?"

"W-Will you really pay us that much? This is bullshit! I'd bet anything that you planted a few CTI people and rigged the game so you couldn't lose! We can't win like this!"

"This is far from bullshit. We could have a group of our people hold onto each other for dear life and get on the same boat. But the boats get smaller, so that plan's out the window. With that, we have no way of controlling the game."

"Any other questions? None? Then I assume that everyone here is hungry, so please enjoy this meal." At that moment a table of the world's finest food rolled into the room. But none of the food left the table. How could anyone crave food after hearing that you could lose a million dollars? Only two people had the guts to eat, two women with cards numbered 13 and 11. The two women leisurely talked to each other about the game, not even caring about the fact that their lives as they knew them would end. A few minutes pass before the croupier makes an announcement.

"Ladies and gentlemen, it is time to begin the rehearsal for this game. Please move to the next room." The seventeen of us are led to a huge empty room with the exception of four secret voting booths.

"Allow me to continue explaining the rules. Each of you has a credit card containing one million dollars. As soon as you are ready to decide which boat you want to get on, you will enter one of the booths, swipe your card and select the boat that you wish to board. Each round will last 240 minutes. In other words, you will be given four hours to board a lifeboat." A few people seem surprised by the long time limit.

"Four hours? But, why?"

"Of course, if you want to take three and a half minutes, that's fine. If you want to take three and a half hours, that is also acceptable. But be warned, if you don't board a lifeboat in four hours, you will go down with the ship. This means that you will lose. Keep this in mind. Since this is only a rehearsal, we will give you only ten minutes, for this round. Begin." The ten minutes start. The players form four lines and before the round is half over, everyone's on a boat. Who needs four hours to get in a lifeboat.

"Time is up." We will now reveal the number of people on each boat. The passengers were revealed one by one, "Number 4, Green. Number 9, Red. Number 11, Red. Number 2, Blue. Number 14, Green. Number 1, Green..." until the board showed seventeen numbers.

"Eight people have boarded the red boat. Five people have boarded the blue boat. And four people have boarded the green boat. The people boarding the red boat have exceeded the cap of five and would have lost this round... Let me tell you a few things that will help you. The important thing here is get in a boat with a few people as possible, or to put it the other way, to draw as many people into the same boat as possible. Saving your life depends on your ability to invade the minds of others and predict their actions. This is the reason why you are given four hours to board a ship. Titanic is a deep game, and if you can read everyone's mind and you have an excellent strategy, the game can end in one round... Let me tell you one last bit of information. The dominant factor in this game is not luck... It is time. These meaningless four hours that we give you will make all the difference. I promise you that whoever uses their time the most efficiently will triumph."


	9. Sylvie

"This ends our rehearsal."

"Does this mean we're stuck here?" I ask.

"Sorry, as the man has just asked, the real game begins tomorrow. The first round is planned for 10:00 and the second round is planned for 16:00. Until then, we ask everyone to stay in this hotel. Don't worry, all expenses have been covered, so make yourselves at home. You all must be tired from coming here. But before I forget, if anyone insists that they must leave, we will not try to stop you. You are free to leave the game at any time." How _could_ we leave? Each of us was already given one million dollars. When we received this money, the game had already started. If anybody had the balls to leave, they would be DQ'ed and incur an almost unpayable debt. In the end, all seventeen of us stayed. One at a time, we were guided to our rooms.

"Mr. Andrews, your room."

"Wow, it looks nice."

"I will call you one hour before the start of the game. Good night." I am left to come up with a plan. A plan to win this game. How do I start? I remember Steiner's words; "The dominant factor in this game is not luck, it is time." How do I use my four hours? Trying to find out the votes of others is too much work. Plus, this is the Confidence Trick. Of course you won't get perfect information. And you can't see anyone cast their votes while they're behind that curtain. There's got to be a way. There's got to be! I hear a knock on my door.

"Hello?" I open the door. I recognize the woman. She was one of the two eating at the feast, number 11.

"Morgan?" She reads my card. It says

"Dana Andrews." I look down to read her card.

"Sylvie Montaigne." I look up at her. Tears well up from her eyes.

_-**Flashback**-_

"I'm back!"

"Hi, Morgan! I was waiting for you!"

"You were studying the _whole_ time I was gone?"

"Yeah, I want to work hard just like you!"

"Sylvie... when you grow up, don't lie and cheat people. Even though it might seem like a good idea, it'll come back to haunt you. But if you live an honest life, you will surely have a happy life." Her brother's words stuck with her all the way through school. Though not the best student in her graduating class, Morgan was still proud of her. After graduating high school, Sylvie went to Yale. But during her second year in college, her brother became sick after decades of hard work.

"Please, Morgan! I can always drop out!."

"No, Sylvie... please. I did all this for you. I did all this so you can get through college and graduate. Don't throw it all away." The Montaignes had nothing. Nothing except oceans of debt. A short time passed before a friend of Morgan's visited with an offer.

"Why didn't you tell me sooner? I know the perfect way to solve your problem. Have you heard of Salvation? A lot of people like you are working from home and making mountains of cash! It's very easy! All you have to do is get more people! In no time, your troubles will be through! Just find some time!"

"Really? It's that easy?"

"I would never lie to you, Morgan!"

"This is the perfect opportunity for me. Thank you!"

"A friend in need is a friend indeed." Morgan was deceived yet again. He signed on to Salvation without knowing the hell he got himself into. He worked endlessly to recruit new members without realizing he was tricked. All that time, his debt was mounting. Eventually, he put two and two together and figured out that his job was cheating others. He was overwhelmed with guilt and tried to leave Salvation. But leaving the group and breaching contract required a huge sum of money. Realizing that his debts were beyond repayment, he began to think about his sister, Sylvie. He wanted to be there at her Yale graduation. But he decided that there was only one way to get his sister through college. He was left with no choice.

"Morgan!" Sylvie saw her brother hanging from the roof by a rope tied to his neck. He didn't move, he only swung side to side.

"Morgan... why?"

During investigations, police found a copy of Morgan's life insurance policy. It immediately became clear that the money would be used to pay off his debt. He died from an overdose of honesty and trust. Sylvie was able to graduate out of Yale. But using all that she learned, she took vengeance and obliterated the corporation that killed her brother.

_-**End Flashback**-_

"Sylvie?"


	10. A Surefire Plan

"Sylvie?"

"Oh, sorry. I thought you were someone else."

"So what's your strategy for tomorrow's game?"

"Know your enemy. Who are they? What are they like? That's how the game starts."

"Got that, thanks." I leave my room and try to talk with some of the players. I see the other fifteen players gathered together in the empty hall. Everyone was doing their own thing. There were a few groups of people having conversation, probably about the game. But there was one person who stood out to me. The woman who had eaten dinner with Sylvie, she just minded her own business and didn't talk to anyone. All she did was lean against a wall like nothing mattered to her. When I tried to talk to the others, some wouldn't listen to me, others just wouldn't stop talking.

**David Kenneth (#8), Former Amateur Skateboarder, age 34**

"I had my identity stolen and lost just about everything. At the end of last year, I owed $750,000. Then, I heard about the Confidence Trick. I had a new lease on life. I managed to win $500,000 in the first part. But that only cleared two thirds of my debt. I had no choice but to go to part two."

"Thanks for telling me about this."

**Kelley Meriwether (#7), no occupation, age 26**

"I only got $100,000 in the first part."

"So why didn't you leave?"

"Wasn't thinking about that. But damn, this is fucked up. A million dollar debt if you lose? Fuck, they played me like shit. Thought it would be like part one. ...What if they're involved in human trafficking? What if they're involved in some organized crime or something like that? We'd be slaves for the rest of our lives."

I return to my room,

"How'd it go?"

"Almost everyone had some sort of financial crisis or came here without knowing. But they all won different amounts of money in part one."

"I see." She acknowledges.

I continue. "The skateboarder won half a million, but nobody else got more than three hundred thousand. There were even three people plus myself who played to a draw and had to play in part two. But what stood out is that the winners all said the same thing. They would have all left after part one if they knew that part two would immedieately follow part one. Nobody expected it basically."

"Good work. Well the game starts up tomorrow so let's get some rest. Don't wanna lose tomorrow. Hell, I can't lose even if I tried."

"What?"

She repeated. "I said, I can't lose even if I tried."

"Why not?"

"I have a strategy that _can't _lose. Not in a million years." She pauses. "What do you define as winning?"

"If I win, I'll get $16 million."

"True, but if there are two people left and you can only get $7.5 million, did you lose?"

"Not at all, $7.5 million is still a shitload of money."

"So what would you say to nothing gained? Nothing lost?"

"I just want out of here. I don't care about money. As long as I don't owe a million dollars and have to break rocks for the rest of my life, fuck the money."

"Good, because the bad news is that this plan won't get us a cent. The good news is that it'll get us out of here."

"You can do that?" I look at her surprised.

"Yep. We just need seven other people. That makes nine. The first round starts with seventeen people. This puts the cap at five. If we split up and take three seats on each boat, we'd have three people out of five left. No matter what happens, we'll have more than half of the remaining players on our side. Then we do it again. Split up and take one seat on each boat. Since the cap on each boat is only one and there are only two players not with us, we'll have it locked up. One us is left, he gets $16 million, pays $8 million to leave, pays the team $1 million to each of eight teammates and the nine of us get off scot free. Two people left and we actually get a profit. $7.5 million times two divided by two is $7.5 million. $7.5 million minus $1 million times seven teammates comes to half a million. About $55,000 to each person. This assumes the closest possible division. But if the votes are spread more widely, we'll win that much faster. Trust me, this strategy can't lose."

"A surefire plan. We've got this game in the bag! Haha. You're amazing, Sylvie!" I was relieved to know that all chance of defeat was erased. We could only win.


	11. Free as Birds

All we had to do was get seven more people to execute the plan. I have Black on my side, that's for sure. That left room for six more.

"Sylvie, I know someone in this game, my former professor Gordi Black. I played against her in the first part and we played to a draw. Over the course of that game, we regained each other's trust. We could get her on our side. That means we only need six people now."

"The first step to winning this game is to recruit. Glad you already found someone. Let's go and get the other six."

"Alright!" We then set out to form our coalition. An hour passes before we successfully recruit Gordi Black (#17), Jean-Dominique Riviére (#5), a long-haired Frenchman, Rose Davis (#6), a Japanese animation fan with dyed pink hair, David Kenneth (#8) , the skateboarder who fell from grace, Luca Montecci (#1), an Italian amateur race car driver, Lucy Miller (#14), a gardener and finally, Natalie Campbell (#10), a lead vocalist for a metal band. The nine of us would march to victory and escape this excuse for a game.

"We have no time to waste. We formed this group to ensure victory. The seven of you will help each other execute this plan to ensure our mutual safety. The only thing I ask is that all of you stick to the plan. This plan will not yield any money, but it will get us all out of this thing they call the Confidence Trick. There is a way out."

"Are you serious?"

"How does it work?"

"There's a way?"

Our seven teammates were all surprised to know that there was a way to beat the system. But there was no guarantee that we would make any money. So I explained the plan and tried to give as rousing of a speech as possible. In the end, everyone signed on.

"Let's do this!"

"Remember, there is no money to win with this plan."

"Haha! Who cares! We'd be lucky to break even!"

"If we lose, which we won't, we'll have a debt of a million dollars! Breaking even is fine by me! Was this your idea?"

"Nope, thank Sylvie for this plan." I introduced Sylvie by moving my arm to face her.

Luca asks a question. "It's a nice plan, but... how can you be sure if it'll work? What if the CTI guys try to cheat?"

Sylvie interrupted. "There's no reason for them to cheat. The dealer said that the winner will take $16 million. But to keep that money, that person needs to go to part three. If they don't, then they will give half of that money back. That money goes to CT."

Luca continued. "So that leaves the question of people in this group betraying us."

"Hmhmhm. Nobody will. Because we'll write a proper contract."

"Okay, I guess that would make it safe. So that leaves another question. Will everyone cooperate with this plan?"

"You bet your ass I will!"

"Right on!"

"Let's do it!" And so, a contract was written; 1) We would stick to the pre-agreed vote, 2) The winner would divide the money equally and 3) Anyone breaking this agreement would repay all resulting damages. The coalition was formed. It was said that the dominant factor in this game would be time, but all we had to do was vote and when it was all said and done, we would all be walking out of here free as birds.


	12. A Better Plan

The time had finally come. It was 10:00.

"Ladies and gentlemen, at this time, we have struck an iceberg. Let the first round of this Titanic game begin! Everybody run for your lives! Get on a boat and pray for survival!" As Steiner finished his game opening speech, the doors were sealed, nobody could get in or out. The CTI prepared all of our needs before the game started. An exceptionally clean bathroom in the corner, four voting booths on the side, a table piled high with a feast for forty people, the seventeen people playing the game and a CTI official for every player for security were all that were conained within the battlefield. But how was it a battlefield? With nine people on our side and an unbreakable strategy, we didn't need to pray. But I couldn't take my eyes off number 13. She was leaning at a corner just watching everyone while everyone else was talking. But she showed no other suspicion. I looked to another corner, Sylvie was doing the same thing, watching everyone. In any case, all we had to do was stick to the predetermined strategy. Myself, Gordi and Sylvie would board the red lifeboat, Luca, Natalie and David would board the blue lifeboat and finally, Rose, Jean-Dominique and Lucy would board the green lifeboat. No matter what happened, we would have at least a majority of the surviving players. After hours of gaining no useful information, I hear people rushing to the voting booths. There were five minutes left. The other players lined up to place their votes, hoping to survive. I go in and swipe my card, three buttons colored red, blue and green light up. According to the plan, I press the red button and leave the booth. Number 13 is just walking into a booth with thirty seconds left. I looked for a sign that she may have come up with a better plan to win. But she casts her vote and leaves the booth as if it was nothing special.

"Time has expired!" announced the croupier. The counting of votes and sinking of ships was about to begin. After completing the counting, the croupier announced the results.

"Five people have boarded the red boat. Six people have boarded the blue boat. And Six people have boarded the green boat. Since the capacity of each boat is five people, all players boarding the blue and green boats will be asked to leave behind their cards. Twelve people handed their cards to the nearest CTI official and left.

"Dana, I think something's wrong." Sylvie had a very bad feeling in her gut.

"What is it. Sylvie?"

"None of the losers... none of the losers are protesting the outcome of this round."

"So?" I asked.

"I think there might be a plan that's better than ours." The thought of a better plan jarred me. I look at the other three players left, Gordi, number 7 and most importantly, number 13. Of the two people outside our alliance, number 13 seemed more suspicious. Could she really have thought of a better plan?

"Congratulations to the five of you who have survived the first cut. We will begin the next round at 16:00."


	13. It's Miss Grace Black

Two hours until the start of the second round. Could there be a better plan in action? If we stick to the plan, there's no way we can lose. So what was Sylvie saying about a better plan? Ours can't fail. It just can't. So what is this better plan that Sylvie is talking about? What is it? Why won't she tell me? I vote blue, Sylvie votes red, and Ms. Black votes green. Simple but surefire. So how can it fail?

"Mr. Andrews, the second round is about to start."

"I'll be right out." I leave my room in preparation for the second and hopefully final round. Two hours of thinking and still nothing. No plan better than ours. We'll win, right? Right? I arrive at the hall again for the second round of this game. This second trick would come to a close in just over four hours.

"Ladies and gentlemen, we have hit another iceberg. The lifeboats will now capsize with more than one person. And now... Abandon ship!" I turn my head to see Sylvie entering the booth.

"Sylvie! What the hell?"

She left the booth asking herself "Who needs four hours?"

The croupier reminded us of a critical rule. "It is okay to make your decision in as much or as little time as possible. Just decide in four hours." Holy fuck. She took a life threatening decision and shrugged it off like it was nothing. We fricking lost. What the fuck, Sylvie. What the fuck. I spend most of the round trying to think of a reason for her careless vote. Then...

"Three minutes remain." I bring myself back up on my feet to cast my vote. I enter the booth. There is a slot through which I swipe my card. Three differently colored buttons appear on the screen. I touch the blue button with my finger and leave the booth. Ms. Black and the other two players leave their booths. The last ten seconds of this round tick by.

"Time has expired. At this point, we will now take a count of the number of people in each boat."

"Wait, before you do that, can I say something?"

"It is not within my power to prevent you from saying any parting words, Ms. Black." The croupier allowed Ms. Black to say

"Everyone calls me Ms. Black. Yeah, right. Shut up. It's _Miss_ _**Grace**_Black."


	14. That was my Trick

"I had no idea you were all so stupid. Gordi Black is my sister in law. She got a bit scared and couldn't come. So she gave me her invitation to this game. That's right, Dana, I don't even know you. This is a confidence Trick. This is **the** Confidence Trick. Now have fun paying back that million. Ha ha ha ha ha ha. What should I do with 16 million dollars?" She had tricked us all, she set us up. Fuck!

"Let me explain my strategy. Remember your bit about making a coalition of nine people? Well, I took it a step further. I made my own group of nine. When we split ourselves into threes, it was no coincidence that I was in the group of five that didn't sink. And that's what brought us here. Since I am not Gordi Black, I am not bound by your contract."

Kelley Meriwether interrupted and held up the other contract. "Are you telling me that this contract is worth nothing?"

"Pretty much."

"You fucking bitch! I'll have your head!" Kelley held his fist up to assault Grace.

"Calm down, Player 7. I don't want to have to disqualify you."

"God fucking dammit! Son of a... RRRAGH!"

"Now without further delay, we will tally the results." Steiner announced the results as they came up on the screen. "Number 16, Blue. Number 7, Blue. Number 13, Green." Two in Blue and one in Red. Grace's jaw dropped at that last vote. Sylvie and Number 13 stood there indifferent about the result. The last two votes were announced. "Number 11, Red. Number 17, Green. Two in the blue boat, two in the green boat and one in the red boat. Player Number 11, Sylvie Montaigne is the winner of this game." Did I just hear right? Did we just win? Did we just win?

"That was **my **Trick." Sylvie gave a soft chuckle. To her left, I saw player 13, Shirley Augustine with her head lowered and a smirk on her face. She pulled something out of her pocket, it was Sylvie's card. I looked at Sylvie's hand. She was holding Shirley's card.

"Couldn't have gone any better. Good work, Shirley."

"Wouldn't have worked without you, Sylvie." _Okay, I'm lost. What did they just pull?_


	15. Game Over For Real

"Hm... you're real idiots. I was with player 11 this whole round."

"So this means... you lied to my face?"

"Exactly, Miss Black. They call this the Confidence Trick for a reason. I know what you were thinking. You thought you could get away with a fake signature. Sylvie told me all about you and your ties with Dana."

"Wait. When did she tell you about Dana?"

"After the first round." Sylvie entered the conversation. "Before the game began, Dana had told me how Part 1 played out for him. You had him on the ropes 19 to 1, you swindled $900,000 out of your former student. Did you care about what happened to him? Or were you more concerned with getting rich? The real Gordi Black had a relationship with Dana that rivaled the relationship between a parent and a child. When he told me about his match in Part 1, I had a feeling that you were not the real Gordi Black. I confirmed that feeling at the end of Round 1. Everyone that lost stayed calm, returned their cards and walked out the door as if this game didn't matter. My suspicions fell almost instantly on you. You told us all that we didn't make the best use of our time. But I say I made the most of my time."

"She told me that 'Player 17 has a trick up her sleeve. But if you join me, we can win. ' She even gave me this." Shirley showed Sylvie's card in her hand. "Player 11 gave this to me after she had voted in exchange for everything I could say about our team. This card has a million dollars on it. Even if I told her everything, it wouldn't serve much to change the outcome of this game. So I kept no secrets from her. I found it hard to believe that you would just blurt out the truth. Sylvie was right, you were a traitor. You almost had me. But thanks to her, we put an end to your little plan. And that's how I trusted Player 11. Wait, I used the wrong word. I was going to keep her card after the game ended, but I learned that the winner must trade their card to collect their money. Without this, she won't win a penny. On top of that, I didn't have a team to fall back on. So I had to give my full cooperation. It's safe to say that this card represents our common interest." She returned Sylvie's card to the winner of this game. Sylvie could now collect her winnings. And thus, the second part of the Confidence Trick came to an end.


	16. The First Intermission

We were escorted out of the hotel. After two of the highest-stakes games I had played, I was finally ready to go home. But I can't help but think about the people who we stole from to get to this point. The short walk to the awaiting limousine suddenly felt like a marathon. Did we really win? Or did we just use everyone for our own gain? Steiner opened the passenger door. Sylvie and I took two seats in the limo.

"Thanks, Steiner."

"Sorry, it's Steinfeld." I seem to have already forgotten his name. The door closes and the vehicle starts moving. I ask Sylvie a question.

"So what will happen to the losers?"

"Losers? What losers? The only loser was that Grace Black woman you thought was your professor."

"Wait. Don't tell me..."

"I'm a nice girl. I gave everyone enough money to forget about this whole thing."

"Huh. So who'd you pay?"

"I won 16 million dollars in the game. 15 million covered everyone's debts. Except Black's. That gave me 1 million dollars to give to anyone I wanted. Everyone on our team (except Black) got $62,500 each. That leaves $500,000. You, Shirley and I will split $375,000. And then it occurred to me that our other teammates (excluding the two of us) should get another $20,000, just as another gift. That left $5,000 which I just gave to Shirley. That means that the rest of our team got $82,500 each , Shirley got $130,000 for her trouble, and we each got $187,500." I failed to notice two cases that were smaller than the ones given by the CT. Sylvie handed me one of the cases and said "Merry Christmas, Dana, but not really." When I opened the case, there was a total of $187,500 wrapped in nineteen bundles. I look at her for a few minutes and then realize something.

"Hold it. Doesn't this mean you're going to the Part 3?" She gave up the $8 million needed to leave.

"Yeah. Anything wrong with that?" I offer her the money she gave me, but she tells me to just take it.

"Like I said, _Merry Christmas_."

"Just take back the money! I'm giving it back!" I push my case back toward her.

"There's no point in doing that. Even if you did, there's still an organization that forces people to lie to each other. And my goal is to find out whose mind this sick and twisted idea came out of." She pushes the case back in my direction as the limo reaches the front of my dormitory building.

"Mr. Andrews, your stop." Two more men in black suits accompany me out of the car with a cash filled case in my hand. As we make our way to my room, a line of thoughts invades my mind. _What is Sylvie's goal? Why does she want to keep risking her life in these high stakes gambles? Why does she act differently around me? Who is behind this Confidence Trick? _I open the door to my dorm with the two suits following me inside. After a brief exchange, one of them leaves and closes the door behind him.

"Have a seat, Mr. Andrews." The other suit and I each pull up a chair and sit down. He reaches into a pocket in his tuxedo and pulls out a card with the words _"Confidence Trick 1st Intermission"_ Is he going to try to force me back in this sick game?

"Mr. Andrews, I would like to discuss the matter of your entry into the first intermission of the Confidence Trick"


	17. Seven Days

"You're probably wondering about Sylvie. You're probably wondering why she acted differently around you, why she helped you without you saying a word. I'm not. I know that she only helped you because something in her past."

"What exactly are you talking about?"

"How much do you know about Sylvie Montaigne."

"All I really know is her name. Besides that, I got nothing. You mean you know why Sylvie acted strangely around me?"

The suited man laughed. "Let me tell you some things about her. Sylvie was a normal person like you until both of her parents were killed in the events of September 11th when she was four years old. From then on, she was brought up only by her older brother Morgan, who took it upon himself to quit college and work eight days a week to support his younger sister. Morgan taught Sylvie that an honest life and hard work are the keys to success, that it is never a good idea to cheat others. These ideals followed Sylvie through high school and into college. But Morgan became ill during Sylvie's second year at Yale. Sylvie thought about leaving Yale and taking care of Morgan, but was convinced to continue towards her degree. Morgan later learned about a group called Salvation. He was led to believe that he could pay off his debts by recruiting others into Salvation. It wasn't until later that he realized that he was being swindled and not only that, but also in recruiting others himself, he was swindling others. Stricken with guilt, he tried to leave Salvation, but doing so would require a large -well, large for him- sum of money. Realizing that his debts were the only obstacle to Sylvie's graduation, Morgan Montaigne hung himself in the basement of his house in the hope that his life insurance policy would cover the money he owed. Free from the debt of her brother, Sylvie went on to receive her degree in psychology. Then, using all she learned in her four years at Yale, she obliterated the corporation that had killed her brother. She was subsequently convicted of fraud and spent 30 months in prison that ended about two weeks ago."

"So that's why she called me Morgan!"

"Exactly. and that's also why she progressed to Part Three, to save you when she failed her brother, her family. I know of only one way to return the favor." The suited man handed me a card with the words _"Confidence Trick 1st Intermission"_. "You must participate in the First Intermission. Other losers from Part Two will also take part. In the Intermission, you can win money and use it to at least pay back Sylvie and buy her out of this Confidence Trick."

"I bet that there'll be more trouble in this game than in the last."

"Not so fast! This game is different from the others! Only losers are playing. This gives you a weaker field and an easier time. This is your perfect opportunity to get the money you need to bail Sylvie out! You lost the second game, but you actually have about $180,000 right now thanks to Sylvie. Everyone would kill to be in your standing! I just gave you an invitation to the Intermission. I don't think it's fair for me to say this as an employee of CT Inc. but, this game is a no-brainer! I guarantee your victory! Sadly, I can't force your participation, but remember, you are the only one who can save Sylvie." After hearing those words, I look down at the invitation.

_**Confidence Trick 1st Intermission**_

_The First Intermission of the Confidence Trick will take place in the Davison Arcade at Bethesda (three buildings to the left of the post office) one week from now on February 12 at 10:00. Please be prompt. You will be allowed to bring anything that you feel will give you victory (with the exception of weapons or drugs). _

"Hopefully, I will see you again in seven days."


	18. Sacrifice

Once again, I found myself fighting for my life in this Confidence Trick. The Davison Arcade was hard to miss. Then again, it was hardly used. Standing outside the worn down building was a man in a suit. He looked oddly familiar. As I approach him, he spoke in the same tone as the man from last night.

"I knew you would come." He turned toward the entrance and said "We got another one here!" as soon as the other suit received confirmation of my arrival, he turned back to me and said "Good luck" before walking away. I was led into the site of the First Intermission of the Confidence Trick. Unlike the first two parts, there were no rooms to sleep in, none of the things that were in the hotel last week. Maybe that's how they treat losers here. I entered the area where I would participate in this First Intermission. Inside, I saw six other people. Five of them I have never seen before, but one in particular stood out among the crowd. It was Grace Black, the only one whose debts Sylvie did not repay.

"Hm. You again." I knew instantly that Grace was talking to me. "So... you lost too, huh." Those were the only words she managed to get out of her mouth before a voice interrupted.

"Welcome to the First Intermission of the Confidence Trick! I call myself Steinfeld! And I will be the croupier for this game!" The man on the screen behind me caught me like a deer in the headlights. But why doesn't he just appear in person?

"For this First Intermission, like Parts One and Two, you will each contend for $1 million. We are now in the process of distributing this money to you." Some men in suits appeared and distributed what looked like a checkbook to each of the seven players in the game. On each of the checkbooks was the name of the person who now owned this checkbook. I look at mine. _"Property of: __**Dana Andrews**__"._ All of the players wondered what these would be used for.

"Each of you has just been given a bundle of what we will refer to as 'contracts'. Each checkbook represents your $1 million. Please open the covers and look at the first blank contract. You should see _'You currently hold: __**$1,000,000**__'_." I open the cover and turn to the first contract. _"You currently hold: __**$1,000,000.**__"_

"These contracts serve the same function as checks. You will be permitted to use these contracts however you please." One of the other players burst in during Steinfeld's introduction.

"Wait... we can use the money? Is that what this game is about!"

"Please, calm down and allow me to tell you what game you will be playing. You all will play... Sacrifice." A pause. "The ancient South American civilizations had a practice of appeasing their gods by performing human sacrifice. The principle in this game is the same. Of the seven of you here today, six of you will survive and one of you will be sacrificed. In other words, six of you will win and one of you will lose. From each block of players in Part Two, there was a wide variety in the number of players wishing to participate in this First Intermission. To make the groups even for this game, five players were transferred from another group into this group. This means that there are now seven players in this group. Six of you will qualify for Part Three." Another voice interrupted Steinfeld.

"Now just hold on! We were told that this game was our chance to pay off our debts from Part Two! Every one of us has a debt of up to a million dollars. If six people win at the expense of only one, then what is our prize?"

"The same as always, the loser will take a penalty of $1 million which will be divided among the surviving players."

"That makes about $160,000! Not even close to enough!'

"That is not necessarily true. You can win much more than $166,666 in this game. Look around, there is no food, no drinks, nothing worth eating. Once the game begins, you will find the items needed for your victory. And you will sell them with this." Steinfeld held up something that looked like the checkbook each of us was given.

"Permit me to explain their use. Say you get thirsty and need a drink but you have nothing. At that moment, a player offers to sell you some water for $1. You accept their offer. Then, both the buyer and seller must indicate the opponent's name, the item sold and the amount paid on their contracts. These will be given to the on-site attendants to be stamped and approved. Unless there is a mutual agreement, the contracts cannot be stamped. Please be aware that if a transaction is approved and the contracts stamped but the agreed upon item is not received, there will be a penalty of $1 million against the defaulting party. If you really want more than just $166,666 then sell, sell, sell! Contracts can buy and sell anything!"

"Like hell they can! Nothing anybody here brought with them can sell for a million, you just tricked us!"

"No, we did not. You will see that in this game, some things can really sell for top dollar." Another pause. "Now I shall explain the full details of this game. If we were to give you a vague rule such as 'Select one player to lose', it would cause only chaos and panic. The Confidence Trick is to be decided by intellect and knowledge of the other players. So you will be given these." Steinfeld pulled out a disc-shaped object from his front pocket. There were some sort of tribal designs on both sides, with a blank space on each side. "You are to write the names of two players you wish to see in Part 3. It does not matter if you write the same name on both sides. But you must only write the names of players that are actually in this game excluding yourself. If you disobey this rule, you will be penalized $1 million. This process will be repeated every thirty minutes. At the end of each round of voting, the number of votes that each player currently has will be tabulated on this screen. At the end of the tenth round, the player with the lowest vote count will be declared the loser of this game and their remaining money in this game will be shared equally among the six winners. Also, the player with the highest vote count will receive a bonus of $1 million and the choice of whether or not to forfeit half of that sum and leave with the other half. Are there any questions?" Silence. "Then this game will start in one hour, after that, you will vote every thirty minutes."

And thus, the First Intermission was underway.


	19. Twenty Votes

In six hours, one of the seven of us will be removed from the Confidence Trick. That player will owe another million to the CT while the others earn $166,666. Sylvie needs $8 million to leave. The money I won from Part Two plus the money Sylvie won plus the $166,666 prize for winning here will only add up to $541,666, nowhere near enough. On top of that, there are these Contracts. Do I even need them for a game that will only last six hours? Sure, I'll get hungry, but it's just six hours without food. But at the end of those six hours, one of the seven of us would leave with an additional debt of $1,000,000 with no chance to cover that debt in the Confidence Trick. But despite that, all six of my opponents seem to have that thought in the back of their minds. Each of them seems to be confident that they will win without a doubt. They seem to be having a friendly conversation.

"So I guess it's settled, I'll lose so that all of you can go through to Part 3. I can always find someone to replace." From what I heard, Grace had volunteered to throw the game and send the other six of us to Part 3. "But first, let's have a little icebreaker. Hey, Dana! Come over here!" I walk to the crowd to join the icebreaker. "Now each of us will talk about our debts and how much danger those debts could put us in. You first." Grace pointed to a man in a Washington Founders jersey.

"My name is Nolan Daniels and I owe $1 million to the Confidence Trick. I have a small family-owned auto repair shop and if I don't pay off this debt, then I'll have to sell to some corporation."

"Okay, now you. What's your story?" A woman in a San Salvacion University sweater stood up.

"My name is Lee Floyd and I owe $1 million as well. On top of that, I have unpaid student loans. If I lose here, I'll be thrown on the streets."

Each of them had their own debts aside from those incurred from this Confidence Trick. Each of them had their own reasons why they should be saved.

"My name is Chris White and I owe $1 million. I'm already working three jobs, barely able to pay my rent. I really need this money."

"My name is Karen Lewis and I owe $1 million. I'm behind four months on my mortgage payments and my house is not worth selling."

"My name is Daniel Schwarz and I owe $1 million. I lost a court case recently and need the money in this game to pay the settlement." Then it came around to me. I was next in line to share my story.

"Before you start, why are you here?"

"I'm here because I lost in Part 2."

"No. Why are you really here? How much do you owe by the way?"

"I owe... nothing." Everyone's heads turned.

"Nothing?"

"You don't owe anything?"

Grace asked another question. "So could this mean that you actually made money in Part 2?"

"Yes, I made $187,500. Is there anything wrong with that?" There was a murmur among the others. I could make out a few of the things people were saying.

"I think I know who's gonna lose."

"We need to win, he doesn't."

"Don't vote him through to Part 3."

"Let's drop him."

"Grace, there's no need to find someone to replace. We have our target."

I had fallen into another one of Grace's traps. Now everyone was turned against me. I tried to continue with the icebreaker, but I couldn't say anything. I just stood there silently. I had just fucked myself over. The group dissolved and went their own separate ways. Grace passed by me.

"Looks like you're on your own, Dana Andrews." Then, her antagonistic appearance changed to a friendly appearance. "Wow, nice act, Dana! Couldn't have been done any better!"

"Huh?"

"It was just an act. To cover our tracks! I don't want them to know about our secret plan."

"Secret plan? You mean you have a way to win?"

"You bet I do!" She took me to a corner of the arcade to explain her winning strategy.

"If this game was about choosing the one player to sacrifice, then you would lose no question. But this game is about choosing the six people to go through. You get two votes each round, you can't vote for yourself, and you must use both votes. So winning this game is child's play for the both of us. All we have to do is vote each other into Part 3. 2 votes per round times 10 rounds is 20 votes and 20 votes per player times 7 players equals 140 votes. If we use all of our votes for each other, we'll both have 20 votes. Since 140 divided by 7 is 20, well, we can't lose unless every single opponent has at least 21 votes. 140 minus 40 equals 100. 21 times 5 is 105. Since 105 is more than 100, ..."

"There's no way for us to lose unless... what if everyone else has 20 votes? Then everyone would lose."

"That's why I set up the icebreaker. The icebreaker served to eliminate any fear our opponents had of losing this game. Now that I've set you up as the one to lose, the others feel more comfortable. They'll think that they don't need a strategy. So naturally the first vote will end with some people (not us) at only one vote or even no votes. Even if they came up with a plan later, we'd still be ahead of them by at least one vote. Once you fall behind, that's it, you just can't catch up to everyone else. Since we will only vote for each other, we will never fall to last place with our 20 votes. So are you in?"

"This plan is fool proof, we can't lose. You managed to figure this out! You've figured out a way for both of us to win! I am _in_! Thank you, Grace!" Grace found a perfect plan to win this game. I thought I would be the one to lose here, until I heard this strategy. I went from having no way to win to having no way to lose. A complete turnaround!


	20. No Way Out

With Grace's fool-proof plan, we are both guaranteed at least 20 votes, the minimum needed to secure a place in Part 3. Grace would vote for me, and I would vote for Grace. The hour quickly passed and it was now time to cast our votes. One at a time, all of the players dropped their disc shaped ballots into a box. The first round of voting was completed.

"It is time to count the number of votes for each player." It only took a couple of minutes for Confidence Trick executives to count the fourteen votes cast in this first round. Whoever is in last place at this point is sure to lose.

"Please look at the screen for the results of the first round of voting."

1st place: Grace Black, 4 votes

2nd place: Nolan Daniels, 2 votes

2nd place: Lee Floyd, 2 votes

2nd place: Christopher White, 2 votes

2nd place: Karen Lewis, 2 votes

2nd place: Daniel Schwarz, 2 votes

7th place: Dana Andrews, 0 votes

0 votes? That can't be right, we had a winning strategy! I'm supposed to have 2 votes! How do I have 0?

"The second round of voting will begin in thirty minutes. I look forward to seeing all of you here again in that time."

"Grace, didn't you promise to vote for me, didn't you promise me 2 votes?"

"Yes, I told you how to win here. Yes, I did promise you 2 votes. No, I had no reason to keep that promise. Yes, this is the Confidence Trick. Yes, this is a con. Yes, you gave me the lead. Yes, you just gave me a million dollars. No, there is no place for you in Part 3."

**=Ten minutes later=**

"God fucking damn this! I let the same person deceive me. Twice!" But I still have nine rounds left. I still have a chance to come back. Maybe if I convince a couple of people to give me a vote, I can still win.

"Excuse me, do you have a moment?" I tried to talk to the girl in the San Salvacion sweater, but she simply walked away from me. Same with the guy in the Washington Founders jersey. It was then that I remembered something that Grace told me.

"This game will be decided by the first round."

**=Twenty minutes later, second round of voting=**

"It is time for the second of ten voting rounds. Please cast your ballots." The thirty minutes had passed like the wind and I still hadn't secured anyone's vote.

"We have finished tallying the votes for this round." It was clear that I was still in last place. "These are the results as of the second round of voting."

1st place: Grace Black, 6 votes

2nd place: Daniel Schwarz, 5 votes

2nd place: Lee Floyd, 5 votes

4th place: Karen Lewis, 4 votes

4th place: Nolan Daniels, 4 votes

4th place: Christopher White, 4 votes

7th place: Dana Andrews, 0 votes

"The next round of voting will occur in thirty minutes." I will see all of you then." At the end of two rounds, I still had zero votes. Everyone had pushed me away. In thirty minutes, the third round of voting came around.

1st place: Grace Black, 8 votes

2nd place: Daniel Schwarz, 7 votes

2nd place: Nolan Daniels, 7 votes

2nd place: Lee Floyd, 7 votes

2nd place: Karen Lewis, 7 votes

6th place: Christopher White, 6 votes

7th place: Dana Andrews, 0 votes

The fourth round also failed to give me any hope of seeing Part 3.

1st place: Grace Black, 10 votes

1st place: Lee Floyd, 10 votes

3rd place: Christopher White, 9 votes

3rd place: Daniel Schwarz, 9 votes

3rd place: Nolan Daniels, 9 votes

3rd place: Karen Lewis, 9 votes

7th place: Dana Andrews, 0 votes

"Here. No charge." A water bottle appeared in front of me. I looked up, it was Nolan Daniels.

"Nolan, thanks. I'll return this favor."

"No need. It's about all I can do. After Grace volunteered herself to lose this game, I planned on giving you my votes. But I can't do that now."

"Why?

"Grace drew us into a panic."

"A panic?"

**=Flashback=**

"Let me tell all of you something, I know someone in this game who actually has money to burn. Andrews managed to get over $180,000 in my Part 2 block. And I have reason to believe that you all are here because all of you owe a million dollars." No one objected to this statement. "We all need those six spots in Part 3. Andrews doesn't. I have a plan." Grace pulled her book of Contracts out of her pocket. "For just $50,000 a person, I can get all of you out of this intermission and into Part 3. Wouldn't that be better than possibly having to buy votes from Dana for a high price of $180,000?"

Lee interrupted, "We can buy votes?"

"Of course, you can buy or sell anything you have on you. If Dana were to give you a reason to betray someone, you wouldn't waste a second to accept if it meant your survival. But with these, our votes are locked. If we all promise to each vote a specific player through to Part 3, then we'll all have at least 20 votes and Dana can't vote for himself, leaving him with 0. This will only cost you $50,000. Plus, when Dana loses, we'll all get $166,666 each. You will all still have $116,666 when all is said and done. But if you don't ride with me, you'll risk an additional debt of $1 million. So, what will it be?"

**=End Flashback=**

So that's why I can't help you. I just wished I didn't get this approved." Nolan tried to destroy his Contract before he realized that this would carry a $1 million penalty. Nolan looked behind him, and saw his conqueror.

"I thought I told you not to talk to Andrews. Be grateful _that_ wasn't written in the Contract." Grace turned toward me. "But this doesn't change the fact that you've lost Dana." She chuckled to herself and walked away.

**=Fifth Round of Voting=**

"For the fifth time, it is time to vote."

1st place: Grace Black, 12 votes

1st place: Lee Floyd, 12 votes

1st place: Christopher White, 12 votes

1st place: Daniel Schwarz, 12 votes

5th place: Nolan Daniels, 11 votes

5th place: Karen Lewis, 11 votes

7th place: Dana Andrews, 0 votes

The sixth round ended the same way.

1st place: Grace Black, 14 votes

1st place: Lee Floyd, 14 votes

1st place: Christopher White, 14 votes

1st place: Daniel Schwarz, 14 votes

1st place: Nolan Daniels, 14 votes

1st place: Karen Lewis, 14 votes

7th place: Dana Andrews, 0 votes

All of my options were exhausted. I had no way out of this situation. There was nothing I could do to change the outcome.


	21. Three Contracts

There was nothing I could do to change the outcome of this game. Until I remembered what Nolan had talked to me about. Nolan and the others had promised to swap votes according to Grace's plan. And then I remembered something the croupier told us before the game started.

"Once the game begins, you will find the items needed for your victory." That left me one question. I walk to a nearby croupier.

"I have a question. Is it possible to buy and sell votes in this game."

"What are you referring to?"

"Is it possible to transfer a part of a player's vote count to another player."

"A player's vote count is their property, therefore if both the seller and buyer agree, a portion of a player's vote count can be transferred." That answer just gave me an idea.

**=Five minutes later=**

"Grace!"

"Dana, if you're gonna ask me to vote you through, then forget it!"

"Then listen to this, there's still a way that we can both go through to Part 3."

"I said I'm not listening to you!"

"What if I told you..."

"Shut up!"

"$1 million! You'll get $1 million!" Grace stopped in her tracks.

"What do I have to do to get the million?"

"It's simple, this is like an elimination tournament. There are fewer players in each round as this Confidence Trick progresses. So it would make sense that there are other people playing this exact same game. All of those groups have finished their games. In this game, the player in first place has the opportunity to leave and abandon half of the $1 million prize while the player in last place leaves with all of the debt accumulated up to their elimination. Thing is there was someone in between who left without the option to do so. So one loser of this game will be brought back in as a replacement. That means that the last place player with the most votes will still have a spot in Part 3. The losing player with the most votes among all of the other groups had 5 votes in their group. So if I get 6, I'll still be safe. In exchange, I'll give you $1 million. You have no chance of taking first place, so I'll give you an equal reward for 6 votes."

"Fine, give me the money!" As soon as we filled out our contracts, the deal was finalized.

**Opponent's name: **Grace Black

**Amount:** $1,000,000

**Conditions:** Receive six (6) votes from Grace in exchange for the indicated amount of money to be paid before the announcement of the final results

**Opponent's name:** Dana Andrews

**Amount:** $1,000,000

**Conditions: **Give six (6) votes to Dana in exchange for the indicated amount of money to be paid before the announcement of the final results

This was the start of a comeback for me. I couldn't wait to see the standings.

**=End of seventh round of voting=**

"It is now time to count the votes."

1st place: Lee Floyd, 17 votes

1st place: Christopher White, 17 votes

3rd place: Grace Black, 16 votes

3rd place: Daniel Schwarz, 16 votes

3rd place: Nolan Daniels, 16 votes

3rd place: Karen Lewis, 16 votes

7th place: Dana Andrews, 0 votes

"Furthermore, there was a transfer of votes during this round. Here are the new results."

1st place: Dana Andrews, 36 votes

2nd place: Lee Floyd, 11 votes

2nd place: Christopher White, 11 votes

4th place: Grace Black, 10 votes

4th place: Daniel Schwarz, 10 votes

4th place: Nolan Daniels, 10 votes

4th place: Karen Lewis, 10 votes

"What the fuck?"

"How does Andrews have 36 votes?"

"I gave him 6!"

"So did I!"

"Isn't it clear as day? 6 times 6 is 36."

"So you took 6 votes from all of us? Then all of those contracts will be invalidated! You'll lose $6 million!"

I calmly state to the other players. "No I won't. This is the Confidence Trick." Nobody disagreed with the latter statement. I continued. "From what I know, 20 votes will guarantee you a spot in Part 3. And all of you either have 11 or 10 votes. That means that by the end of the game, you all will have 16 or 17 votes. Adding in my votes will give you no more than 18. All of you need at least two more votes to go through to Part 3. I have 16 extra votes that will go to the highest bidder. Let's start with one vote for all the money you got." At first everyone stood silent and nobody took me up on this deal. The eighth round ended like so.

1st place: Dana Andrews, 36 votes

2nd place: Lee Floyd, 13 votes

2nd place: Christopher White, 13 votes

2nd place: Daniel Schwarz, 13 votes

2nd place: Nolan Daniels, 13 votes

6th place: Grace Black, 12 votes

6th place: Karen Lewis, 12 votes

"Dana! Your votes would really help me through to Part 3! I'll take your offer! $1.25 million! I have no chance! You would never vote me through! Please, give me two votes!"

Karen entered the scene. "Give me some votes too! I'll also take two! I'm willing to pay $950k! Just take me through!" With the $2.2 million I got from selling four of my votes, I was able to pay back Grace and Karen. That left four contracts to be fulfilled. Lee overheard Grace and Karen and ran to me to buy votes for herself.

"I'll give you anything! $950k for two votes! That's all I have!"

"Then fill out your contract." The contracts were validated just before time ran out. The results at the end of the ninth round were as follows.

1st place: Dana Andrews, 30 votes

2nd place: Lee Floyd, 17 votes

3rd place: Grace Black, 16 votes

3rd place: Karen Lewis, 16 votes

3rd place: Christopher White, 16 votes

3rd place: Nolan Daniels, 16 votes

7th place: Daniel Schwarz, 15 votes

This left three contracts to be fulfilled by the end of the game. Christopher's, Nolan's and Daniel's. I had thirty minutes to make all the moves I could before the game ended. If I didn't honor my end of those three deals, then I would end up owing $3 million. But I had a plan to make sure that that would not happen.


	22. Endgame

"Dana! Please, I only have 15 votes to everyone else's 16, I'm in last place! I'll give everything I got for just two votes! Another $950k! That'll put me at 19, but you'll vote me through, right?"

"I don't know, Dan... fill out the contract and let me think about it."

"I'll give you another million on top of that if you vote me through! Let me fill out another contract!" He was desperate enough to pay all of the money that he had, knowing that he wouldn't get it back until at least Part 3.

"Do it and you'll go through. Fill out the contracts." I fill out two contracts of my own.

**Opponent Name:** Daniel Schwarz

**Amount:** $950,000

**Conditions:** Give two (2) votes to Daniel in exchange for the indicated sum.

**Opponent Name:** Daniel Schwarz

**Amount:** $1,000,000

**Conditions:** Vote once for Daniel in exchange for the indicated sum.

I now had $6.1 million. Minus the $6 million used to fulfill everyone's contracts, I held $100,000. By the end of the round, Daniel would have 20 votes, Lee would have 19 votes, and Grace, Karen, Nolan and Chris would have 18 votes each. I still held first place with 28 votes, that left me with 7 votes to sell. Plus, I still had one vote which I had not yet promised to anyone. Everyone was coming to me asking for those last one or two votes. Chris and Nolan came to ask for my help and offered $950,000 each for one vote. But rest assured, I told them that I would vote them both through. Karen and Grace pleaded for the two votes needed to enter Part 3. Neither of them cared if they were paying all of their money. I had 22 votes left. There were still three players with only 19 votes; Lee, Chris and Nolan. I had only one vote to give and one vote that I hadn't promised yet. That meant only two of those three would advance to Part 3. Chris, Nolan and Lee all came to me and begged for that last vote. They each had already filled out a contract.

"You might want to rewrite those contracts. I only have one vote to give. So that means that two of you have to hope that I vote you through. This last vote will go for three million dollars."

"Three million? None of us have three million!"

"But you each have one million. You will all give me your million and one of you will randomly get this last vote. But if you don't give me your million, you will have no chance to make it out of here." If the offer was accepted, they would have a one in three chance. But if the offer was declined, they would forfeit that one in three chance and have to rely completely on me. In the end, all three of them took my offer.

**Opponent Name:** Lee Floyd

**Amount:** $1,000,000

**Conditions:** Lee, Nolan and Chris will randomly decide who will receive one (1) vote, all three of them will each pay the indicated sum.

**Opponent Name:** Nolan Daniels

**Amount:** $1,000,000

**Conditions:** Lee, Nolan and Chris will randomly decide who will receive one (1) vote, all three of them will each pay the indicated sum.

**Opponent Name:** Christopher White

**Amount:** $1,000,000

**Conditions:** Lee, Nolan and Chris will randomly decide who will receive one (1) vote, all three of them will each pay the indicated sum.

"Very well then. I'm thinking of a number between one and twenty."

Lee gave her answer. "11!"

Nolan responded. "6!"

Chris gave his guess. "12!"

"The answer was 19. So Chris wins." At that exact moment, the announcement came to commence the final round of voting. One at a time, we each cast our last two votes. These votes would decide the six players who would advance to Part 3.

"It is now time to announce the final results for this First Intermission. We will start with the first place player and go in order of ranking."

"In first place, Dana Andrews with 21 votes."

"21 votes? That means if you have 19, you'll lose."

"Dana Andrews, you will now be awarded an additional prize of $1 million." That gave me eight million. "There are five players tied for second place. Tied for second place, Grace Black with 20 votes."

"Yes!"

"Tied for second place, Karen Lewis with 20 votes."

"Whew."

"Tied for second place, Christopher White with 20 votes."

"Yeah!"

"Tied for second place, Daniel Schwarz with 20 votes."

"Damn right!"

"There is one more player tied for second place. The player whose name I do not call will not proceed to Part 3. Tied for second place, … Lee Floyd with 20 votes."

"Yes! Thank you Dana!"

"In seventh place, Nolan Daniels with 19 votes."

"Dana, …"

"Thank you, Nolan."

"Dana, was there a reason to send me off?"

"After the icebreaker, everyone turned against me. But later, you came and told me about Grace's strategy. You gave me so many ideas."

"So why'd I have to lose?"

"I've been thinking about a way to beat this system that they call the Confidence Trick. And I think I've got it down. The CT gives a million dollars to every player to start each part and asks for it back at the end. The winners can choose to leave and forfeit half of their winnings from that game. But if nobody does that, then there is no profit for CTInc. For example, I broke even in Part One, even though both myself and my opponent were forced to proceed to Part Two as a result, CTInc. made no money. In Part Two, the winner takes it all. But if that winner gives back everyone's million, then the result is the same, CT gets nothing."

"But the winner still has to go through to Part 3."

"That can't be changed, but eventually, everyone will be able to escape. As long as the winner doesn't leave, the CT yields nothing for CTInc. and everyone will break even. But in this first intermission, the CT gives $1 million to each of seven players. In addition, the player in first place, gets $1 million on top of that. The player in last place has all of their money from this game split among the other six players. That means that they give $8 million but only take back $7 million. This means that $8 million is split among six people, those six people gain between them $2 million. This game may appear to give one person the boot. But the way I see it, this game gives one person a key. So I will buy that key for Nolan at $2 million." I walk to Nolan and present him a contract worth $2 million. "Take it and run." I turned to face the other players. "In my eyes, Nolan was the only one who played an honest game. So I will give him this key. Each of you has also lost $1 million in this game. I will now return that money to each of you. It'll be like we never played this game."

"Seems you've done well on your own!"

"Sylvie?"

"They told me to come here at 15:45."

"For what?"

"Dana Andrews, if you do decide to redistribute your winnings, you will forfeit the opportunity to leave."

"Like I would. I'm going through to Part 3."

"Then this First Intermission has ended." The screen then displayed static. All of us except Nolan would continue to Part 3. But I would soon learn why Sylvie was instructed to come here almost immediately after this game ended. Steinfeld reappeared on the screen.

"And Part 3 has begun."


	23. Heist

"And Part 3 has begun." At the moment he finished this phrase, several suited men and women walked towards us. Behind us were more CT suits. On both sides, there was one suit to every player. They herded us seven to a bus that would guide us to the venue of Part 3. The CT suits joined us on the bus as it started. Once the bus started moving, it would take us all back into the fire. Eventually we arrived to the site of Part 3 of the Confidence Trick. All seven of us walked single file off of the bus. Another smaller van pulled up beside the bus.

"This site has an odd number of players. Please allow for one more player at this site, this will result in an even number of players on site 3 as well as this site, site 4"

"Understood." responded the man who had driven us here. The eighth player for this game stepped out of the van.

"I call myself Wilma Schilling. It is a privilege to meet you all." Her presence alone shook fear in all of us, but there was no time for us all to just stand and talk. All of us were led into the bank for Part 3. The bank was clearly divided into two halves, with the vault in the exact center and two doors on opposite sides.

"Welcome all, to Part Three of the Confidence Trick. In Parts One and Two, as well as the first intermission, you played a game as an individual. But this time, you will be playing as a team. This game is called... Heist. A bank has an almost boundless supply of money. Naturally, there are people who want to steal that money for themselves. This game will put you in the role of a bank robber. Your goal is to take as much money for your syndicate as possible. Allow me to explain the rules."

- Each team selects two players to enter the vault. Please note that the same player cannot be sent into the vault three times in a row.

- The four players in the vault each have a simultaneous choice to attack or defend. To attack someone, you need only write their name. To defend from being attacked, you need only write the word "defend".

- A player is considered "dead" if attacked by a player while undefended.

- A player is considered "arrested" if they defend without being attacked or attack a player who defended.

- All players in the vault who are not dead or arrested will split $600,000.

- If all players in the vault are dead or arrested, the round will be repeated. During the repeated round, all players who defended must attack and all players who attacked must attack a different person or defend. If this repeated round ends again with all players dead or arrested, then the four players outside the vault will split the $600,000 and the four players inside the vault will receive a warning.

- A second warning will disqualify the player and his money will be split among the surviving members of his team.

- This process will be repeated forty times for a total of $24 million at stake

- The team with the most money will be declared the winners of this game and advance to Part 4. The player on the losing team with the most money will also advance to Part 4.

"Are there any questions."

Karen offered a question. "Will this mean that we will have to pay $3 million?"

"Yes, your potential reward here is triple of what it was in each of the first two parts. This is our gift to you for making it this far." This really was no gift. If our prize was three times larger, then it follows that our risk was three times greater, giving us one third of the leeway we had earlier. But that was offset somewhat by the fact that Sylvie no longer had to forfeit half of the $16 million she had won in Part Two. Still she only had $187,500 after giving away most of that money to the other fifteen contestants excluding Grace. Chris raised his hand to ask a question.

"What will happen to those that don't qualify for Part 4?"

"Nothing special, they will end their participation and collect or owe the money that was won or lost. Any more questions?" There was a silence. "Then we will require four volunteers for a practice round."

Schilling stepped forward. "Count me in."


	24. Schilling

"That makes two." Sylvie volunteered herself for this practice round.

"Guess I'm in." I volunteer for the practice round.

Lee was the fourth and last person to volunteer. "I'll do it."

"The practice round can now proceed." The four volunteers were led into the vault used for this game. Inside were 40 safes, a clock and four booths, two colored red and two colored blue.

"Once the players are inside the vault, they will have five minutes to talk as much as they want. They may talk about anything. A player can enter one of their team's booths at any time, but doing so removes one minute from the discussion phase. When the time allotted for the discussion phase expires or when a player enters their booth with less than one minute remaining, all players must immediately enter their booths. Inside their booths, they must choose without any further persuasion to attack or to defend. All players not killed or arrested will share the money inside the safe, $600,000. Your five minutes start now."

Sylvie whispered into my ear "Attack me."

"Are you crazy, that's friendly fire."

"If you attack me and I defend, that means one of us will win at least $200,000."

"There's $600,000 at stake, they'll have $400,000 to our $200,000."

"But there are 10 possible ways this round can play out."

-If Lee and Wilma both defend, then they'll both be arrested and our team wins 1-0.

-If they try to betray one another, then they still get nothing, 1-0.

-If both of them shoot me, then they're both dead and our team still wins 1-0.

-If they both shoot you, then the worst case scenario happens where we lose 1-2.

-If one of them defends and the other shoots me, one of them will be arrested and the other will die, another sweep, 1-0.

-If one of them shoots you instead of me, it's a tie, 1-1.

-If for some reason they do exactly what we do, it's another tie at 1-1.

-If they shoot both of us, you'll already be dead and so will whoever shoots me, 1-1.

-If one of them tries to betray the other, and the other shoots me, it's another tie, 1-1.

-If the other shoots you, we lose 1-2.

"When the round ends 1-0, we sweep the money, $600,000. When the round ends all square, we split the money, $300,000 each. When the round ends 1-2, we take $200,000 and they take $400,000. There is a 5 in 16 chance of the round going 1-0, a 1 in 2 chance of the round ending 1-1, and a 3 in 16 chance of the worst case scenario, 1-2. This gives us an expected value of ($600,000 * 5/16+$300,000 * 1/2+$200,000 * 3/16)-$300,000 = ($187,500 + $150,000 + $37,500 - $300,000) = $75,000 per round. $75,000 * 40 = $3,000,000. Now you know."

"Time is up. Please report to your team's booths and indicate your action." Our plan was set. 

"All actions are in, it is time to reveal the results." All four actions were revealed.

**Dana Andrews**: Attack Montaigne

**Sylvie Montaigne**: Defend

**Lee Floyd**: Attack Andrews

**Wilma Schilling**: Attack Andrews

**Surviving Players**: Montaigne, Floyd, Schilling

**Money Won**: $200,000 per person

Did they figure out our strategy? There's no way they could have known our plan.

"Nice to see you again... Sylvie."

"What the hell is she talking about?"

"Nothing you need to know about, Dana." There must have been something between these two. I felt uneasy, knowing that these two have most likely met before. All four of us left our booths and the vault.

"The practice round is now over." The two halves of the bank changed color and showed two emblems, one with the word "Hawks" and another with the word "Ravens". The screen above the vault split in two and showed how the eight of us would be divided.

**Hawks **

Dana Andrews

Grace Black

Christopher White

Sylvie Montaigne

**Ravens**

Karen Lewis

Daniel Schwarz

Wilma Schilling

Lee Floyd

Thus began Part 3 of the Confidence Trick.


	25. Far From a Team Game

We were now officially divided into two teams Grace, Sylvie, Chris and I formed the "Hawks". Karen, Dan, Wilma and Lee formed the "Ravens"

"So, who's up first?"

"I have another plan." Sylvie indicated her intention to play this first round.

"You screwed up last time, Sylvie." Grace voiced her objection to Sylvie playing the first round.

"In the practice round, both of our opponents shot Dana. So what if they tried that again?"

Chris gave an answer. "Then one of you survives the round no question."

"Which is why we'll shoot both of our opponents this round. 2-1, we win."

"Wait..." Grace found a flaw in this plan. "If they both defend, won't we lose 2-0?"

"You're coming with me then."

"Round 1 of 40 will begin shortly, please select two players from your team to play this round."

"Guess we're on our way then."

At the vault, we saw Grace and Sylvie against Lee and Dan. The croupier announced the start of the five minute strategy period.

"Grace! Come here and let me tell you my real plan!" Grace approached Sylvie to listen in on their plan. Sylvie's voice fell suddenly to a whisper. After she explained her plan in less than two minutes, they both rushed to their booths. The three and a half minutes that were on the clock diminished to ninety seconds. But that did not matter, Lee and Dan were already approaching their booths. When the doors closed with the four of them inside, the croupier officially called time and cut the camera's signal. All of the players had one minute to write down their actions. A clock appeared on the screen._ 60... 59... 58... 57..._ The clock wound down to 0. 

"We will now reveal the players' actions for this round.

**Grace Black:**

**Sylvie Montaigne:**

**Daniel Schwarz:** Defend

**Lee Floyd: **Defend

Mr. Schwarz and Ms. Floyd have been arrested. The prize for this round will be split among Ms. Montaigne and Miss Black.

"What? You're supposed to make a choice!"

"That's against the rules!"

The croupier explained the wording of the rules for this game. "The lack of action is not against the rules. There is no rule governing what is to be done in the event that a player refuses to input an action. They therefore do so at their own risk."

"That's not fair!"

The croupier responded with "It is irrational to not act in a round. Therefore, there is no reason to apply a penalty for inactivity. The sum of $300,000 will be given to the survivors, Ms. Sylvie Montaigne and Miss Grace Black." Sylvie and Grace returned to the Hawks' team room.

"Oh yeah! We're up 300k!" Grace watched her score for this game increase to three hundred thousand dollars.

"You had us scared for a bit." Chris seemed to still be hyperventilating slightly as he said this. Sylvie approached me to give me some information.

"Defend. Both of you should defend."

"Aren't they going to try the same strategy we did?"

"If you do nothing, the only way to get rid of you is to attack you. They think you're going to do nothing like we did. So they'll attack. Their game plan will cycle a dozen times now that they've been shaken up, but their mind will rest on 'attack'."

"Round 2 of 40 has started, please select two to play."

"Good luck." With almost no delay, Chris and I entered the vault and two of the booths. Karen and Schilling entered the other two booths. The round took more like thirty seconds.

"We will now reveal the players' actions for this round."

**Dana Andrews: **Defend

**Christopher White:** Defend

**Karen Lewis: **Defend

**Wilma Schilling:**

"What the..."

"I have your strategy figured out. Let me tell you now that this is far from a team game."


	26. I Want to Hear More of it

"I have your strategy figured out. Let me tell you now that this is far from a team game."

"But doesn't everyone win and lose as a team?"

"You're right. But if you lose on your turn in the vault, you'll lose your money. If your team loses but you get your $3 million during the game, you have nothing to worry about."

"Who would screw their team over for money?"

"You'd be surprised at the answer to that question."

"Round 3 of 40 will begin shortly, please select two to play."

"Good luck to you two." Sylvie and Grace left for the vault a second time. I walked to a drawer and opened it.

"Dana, what're you doing?" I took a pen and a pad of paper from the drawer and turned to Chris.

"I'm winning, what does it look like to you?" I tried to think of a contract that would lock this game and have everyone win. But how could it be done? In the time it took to play this round, I was only able to create a foundation for this contract.

"We will now reveal the players' actions for this round."

**Sylvie Montaigne:**

**Grace Black:**

**Daniel Schwarz:** Attack Schilling

**Wilma Schilling:** Defend

"Ms. Montaigne, Miss Black and Miss Schilling have each won $200,000." Soon, Grace and Sylvie returned to our team's HQ. Sylvie eyed the pad of paper I was drafting the contract on.

"What are you writing, Dana?"

"I'm finding a way to win this game. For now, I won't play this round."

"Round 4 of 40 will begin in a few moments."

"Guess I'm going back into the vault." Grace happily embraced this additional chance to earn money. She and Chris left the room to play the round. Sylvie pulled up a chair next to me and sat down.

"I know what you want to talk about. It's about Wilma. What do you have against her?"

"I guess it's time to tell you why I'm here. About three years ago, I took down a large company because they swindled my brother Morgan out of his life. Wilma happens to be one of those people who had a hand in that charade. I think they told you that so you would come back and try to get me out of this twisted stunt. But I've already resolved myself to finding out who had this idea in the first place."

"If that's what you want, then I'll get as far as I can with you. But right now, we have a game to win. I'll have finished writing these contracts by the end of the next round." Our conversation was cut short by the end of this round.

"We will now reveal the players' actions in this round.

**Grace Black: **Attack Floyd

**Christopher White:** Attack Lewis

**Lee Floyd: **Defend

**Karen Lewis: **Attack Black

"Mr. White and Ms. Floyd have survived the round and will win $300,000 each." Moments later, Grace and Chris returned to the team room.

"This sucks!"

"Yeah! 300-k!"

"You guys have another chance. Apparently our friend Dana has a plan and I want to hear more of it."


	27. I'm Bringing This Down

"Uh... no we don't. I was there two rounds in a row."

"Guess Dana and I are up." At the moment she finished this sentence, I folded the draft and hid it under a couch to make sure nobody could take advantage. Just before we arrived at the vault, Sylvie whispered into my ear.

"Don't do anything this round, just get into your booth. They can't get both of us with no risk." The round went by quickly, without any time needed to strategize. In the end...

"We will now reveal the actions of all players."

**Sylvie Montaigne**: Defend

**Dana Andrews**:

**Wilma Schilling**: Defend

**Daniel Schwarz**:

"Mr. Andrews and Mr. Schwarz have won $300,000 each." Sylvie and I returned to the team room after the round ended.

"So Dana, what's this plan you got?"

Sylvie whispered. "Dana, remember what happened in Part 2? I wouldn't trust her."

"I'm not finished coming up with the plan, so I can't tell you yet."

"Round 6 of 40 will begin shortly. Please select two players." Grace and Chris hurried over to the vault for another chance at the money. Sylvie remained seated next to me.

"So what do you plan on doing with these contracts?"

"I have a way for everyone in this game to make it out of here."

"Let's get real. Everyone here owes something to the CT. There's no way we can settle everyone's debts." Sylvie paused. "But I do have a plan of my own. I'm going to bring down the CT."

"How are you going to do that?"

"If a thousand people lose a million dollars each to this scheme, then the CT can fairly easily collect a million from each of those thousand and make a billion with a capital 'B'. But if that debt was to rest on one person, there aren't that many billionaires in this world. The CT could take everything he has and everything he'll ever have, but they'll never get anywhere close to a billion out of him. They'll fold and everyone wins."

"Wait, you're prepared to sacrifice yourself?"

"I want to put an end to this charade. That's all that matters to me. I don't believe this will affect your plan. You were probably planning the same thing."

"Well... yeah... but..."

"So what do you have so..." A countdown appeared on the screen. _60...59...58...57...56..._ "What do you have so far?"

"Well, I was looking for a way for everyone to get their three million, but I tried to find a plan that couldn't be screwed up. Everyone here owes a million except you, me and maybe her." _45... 44... 43..._

"If three people cooperate, then the most that Schilling can get is 200-k. She'll most likely appear in 23 of the 35 remaining rounds. But that will still get her 4.6 million and I don't want her walking away rich." _31... 30... 29... 28..._

"What If we split up, you know, everyone take a different action? If she defends, she'll get 200-k, if she stands, she loses, if she attacks, she loses... That's it! We have to play Russian Roulette with her! Of course, one of us will stand, but the other two will either stand or take their assigned action with a 50-50 chance." The clock hit zero as I prepared for my next sentence, ending the round. Even though I couldn't finish my plan, I was well on my way to breaking this game.

"We will now reveal the actions of all players."

**Grace Black**: Defend

**Christopher White**: Attack Schilling

**Lee Floyd**: Attack Black

**Wilma Schilling**: Defend

"Miss Black and Ms. Schilling will each receive $300,000" Grace and Chris returned to the team room.

"Yea-ah!"

"Dana didn't get to finish telling me his plan. Looks like you guys are going back into the vault."

"Not before I know what's in it for me."

"Dana's thinking of a way to take down Wilma."

"But why Wilma? What do you have against her?"

"This is personal, Grace. Don't get into it."

"Okay, alright, no need to get loud. I'll go back to the vault."

"Guess I'm up again." Grace and Chris returned to the vault with almost no delay. When the coast was clear, Sylvie and I returned to discussing the plan.

"So as I was saying before, there are four possible ways to play a round. 1) Everyone stand. If Wilma attacks, she'll gain 200,000 and so will two of us. If she defends, she'll get nothing. If she stands, everyone gets 150,000 each. 2) One of us attacks Wilma while the other two stand. She would have to defend to win the round with 200,000. 3) One person defends and the other two hold. If she stands, she'll get 200,000. If she defends, she loses. If she attacks she'll either get 300,000 if she kills one of the two idlers or lose if she hits a defender. 4) One holds position, one attacks Wilma and one defends. She can only defend and win 300,000 or lose. To sum it up, If she stands, she'll either get 150,000 or 200,000 and lose half of the time, giving an expected value of 87,500. If she defends, she'll get 200,000 or 300,000 and still lose half of the time for an expected value of 125,000. If she attacks, she can win 200,000 or 300,000 but the chances of her losing increase to 7 in 12. This gives an expected value of 100,000. As I mentioned before..." I ignored the timer that appeared on the screen as I tried to once and for all finish my plan. _60... _"... her best bet is to defend. 125,000 times a maximum of 22 appearances would still equal 2.75 million dollars." My voice began to trail off. "And 2.75 million plus the 1.4 million she already won would still give her 4.15 million."

"We still have the 375,000 from the first two parts." _42... 41... 40..._ "And I already said that I don't care how deep I get. I'm bringing this down."


	28. In Motion

_39...38...37..._ "And she can't defend every round. If she blindly follows the optimal strategy, we'll just counter it. She can't get 2.75 million like that." _30...29... _"So all that's left to do is to tell the others about the plan. It probably won't even matter if Schilling gets word of it. But we're going to have to make a copy for every player except her. Since there's no photocopier, if we make one copy and put everyone's signatures on it, it takes only one douchebag to rip it to shreds." _15... 14... _"But if we have seven, then we have seven separate commitments to your plan rather than one commitment made by seven people." _10... 9... 8... _With all possible threats eliminated, our plan could take motion.

"We will now reveal the actions taken by the players."

**Grace Black: **Attack Lewis

**Christopher White: **Defend

**Karen Lewis: **Defend

**Daniel Schwarz: **Defend

"Ms. Lewis is the only one to survive the round and therefore wins $600,000. Round 8 of 40 will begin in a couple of minutes." Grace and Chris returned to our room.

"You couldn't just stick with the plan could you."

"Oh sure, like I had a reason to give up 200-k."

"If we lose, it doesn't matter how well you did; you're not going through to Part 4!"

"If I get four million, five million and lose, there is nothing in the rules that can take anything past the three million we were given. In other words, I win!"

Sylvie entered the conversation. "How can you win if Dana and I find a way to force cooperation among everyone else?"

"Ha! Like you have a plan!"

"As a matter of fact, I do. We were going to use seven people to execute this plan. But we really need only five to put it in motion. The target of our plan will be lucky to get another two million before the game is over."

"Are you going to betray me?"

"You're going to answer that question after this round..."

"Round 8 of 40 will now begin. Dana Andrews and Sylvie Montaigne, as your teammates have appeared twice in a row, please report to the vault to avoid a third straight appearance by said teammates. Ravens, please select two to oppose them." Out of concern for my plan, I took all of the contracts and a pen with me to the vault.

"Dana, you might not want to take those with you."

"Yes, I do, it's time to set this plan in motion."

**Author's Note: Well this is the first chapter I've uploaded in a while. These might come up more slowly because my senior year starts up in three weeks. So this chapter is mainly to tell you I'm still alive and will still write plenty more over the school year. Plus, I'm always open to requests for other fanfiction. So let me hear what you think!**


	29. In the Bag

Sylvie and I entered the vault against Wilma and Daniel. Wilma saw the pen and paper in my hand.

"What do you plan on doing with...?" Ignoring her, I turned toward the camera and the four players watching.

"Everyone listen up! Do you remember what happened at the end of the Intermission?" With Wilma now in the background, I continued. "We were given seven million dollars when we started the Intermission and came out with eight million! In this game, it's completely possible for everyone to break even with three million each!"

"Shit, he played that card again." Sylvie whispered under her breath.

"If we work together, we can break this game! To the Ravens, your team is obviously dominated and controlled by Wilma Schilling. But if you sign on to this plan, you can escape her grasp."

"Count me in." Daniel came to me and received one of the contracts. The only clause in the contract was written as "I agree to cooperate with Dana Andrews and with all others who cooperate with him." Easy enough for him to do he thought. He signed on without a second thought.

"Anything to get Wilma out of my hair." Sylvie signed onto my plan for the single purpose of taking down Wilma. I made my way to Wilma and offered her the chance to win in the slim hope that she would accept. Not to my surprise, she left for a booth. Her loss. Sylvie, Daniel and I got together with two minutes until we had to go into the booths.

"So what's the plan?" Daniel asked.

"I'll stand. Sylvie, shoot or stand at your own discretion. Dan, block or stand at your own discretion. Choose as randomly as possible." We had Wilma on the ropes in this round. The three of us went to our booths, ending the strategy period. A countdown appeared. _60... 59... 58... 57... 56..._ I stood idle for the entire minute, wondering what the others decided to do...

"We will now reveal the actions taken by the players."

**Dana ****Andrews****: **

**Sylvie ****Montaigne****: **

**Daniel ****Schwarz****:**

**Wilma ****Schilling****:**

Four blank spaces. Nobody did anything this round.

"All players in the vault will receive $150,000." As we left our booths, I could hear Wilma say under her breath. "Time to rethink."

Sylvie and I returned to our team's base of operations only to be told by our teammates that Wilma would not come back the next round, and to re-enter the vault and let the other two Ravens in on our plan. It took us almost no time at all to explain the plan to Karen and Lee. They signed on with ease. If Wilma came along again, we would have a way to keep her out of the money. But practice makes perfect.

"Let's say I'm Wilma Schilling. Your goal is to make sure I win as little money as possible. I will enter a booth to prevent myself from hearing your strategy. I will not know what you will do, so feel free to try any method." Sylvie entered her booth, removing one minute from the clock and her ability to hear outside the booth.

"Lee, stand. Karen, shoot Sylvie or don't shoot. Make this choice at your own discretion. I will block or stand at my discretion. Now let's do this." The three of us entered the other booths and triggered the 60 second countdown. It only took ten to make our choice and fifty to sit and wait while the clock ran down to zero.

"We will now reveal the actions taken by the players."

**Dana ****Andrews****:** Defend

**Sylvie ****Montaigne****: **Defend

**Lee ****Floyd****: **

**Karen ****Lewis****:** Attack Montaigne

"Ms. Montaigne and Ms. Floyd have each won $300,000." The four of us left our booths as Sylvie told our 'opponents' "Good call."

We returned to our team room and explained the plan to Grace and Chris. Chris subscribed to the plan without hesitation.

"What's in it for me?" Grace asked.

Sylvie gave her response. "In the event that you clear your debts here, I only ask for half of the surplus to pay the owings of the remaining debtors, excluding of course, myself, Dana, and Wilma. The other half will be yours to keep."

"And if we lose?"

"Then I have no problems with you passing your debts on to me."

"Fine. I'll sign on, but I'm not going anywhere if we win."

"Fine by me. Just one thing before you put your signature down." Sylvie wrote an amendment to Grace's contract. _"__I __will __not__, __in __any __way__, __betray __anyone __who __works __under __this __plan__. __I __understand __that __doing __such __in __the __eyes __of __either __Dana __Andrews __or __Sylvie __Montaigne __will __be __punished __with __a __payment __of__ $1,000,000 __immediately __after __this __game __ends__. __I __also __understand __that __to __terminate __this __contract __before __the __end __of __the __game __without __the __consent __of __Andrews __or __Montaigne __will __require __an __additional__ $1,000,000." _

The moment of truth was now at hand. Without this clause in her contract, she was free to betray us at any moment to pay off her own debts. This meant that at least one million dollars would leave the system. But if she did not agree to this deal, she would be left in the rain with up to an additional $2.2 million in debts. She was left with no choice.

"Guess I have no choice." She put her name to the paper and sealed the deal.

"Remember, talk with your friends, but act random."

"Round 10 of 40 will begin shortly. Grace Black and Christopher White, your teammates have been in the vault two rounds in a row. Please report to the vault. Ravens, please select two to oppose them." Grace and Chris left our room for the vault. Sylvie looked happy during the last round. Perhaps it was because Wilma's grip on her team was slipping. She wasn't there last round. Sylvie and I watched the round unfold perfectly.

"We will now reveal the actions taken by the players."

**Grace ****Black****:**

**Christopher ****White****:**

**Wilma ****Schilling****: **Attack Schwarz

**Daniel ****Schwarz****: **Defend

"Miss Black, Mr. White, and Mr. Schwarz have each won $200,000."

"Mission accomplished! This game's in the bag!" With thirty rounds left, it was a bit too early to celebrate, but still, we already made a winning move.


	30. You Know Nothing

"Round 11 of 40 will begin shortly. Teams, please select two players to enter the vault."

"Dana, Chris, you two are up. Get some money for yourselves. You're gonna need it."

"It's settled." Chris and I enter the vault for this round. Opposing us: Karen and Daniel, the two Ravens with the lowest scores at the moment. The door closes behind us. At that moment, Karen and Daniel look like they have made the ultimate move in this game.

"Congratulations on a job well done!" Daniel steps forward and congratulates me on our successful plan. "On top of Wilma losing her control over us, we also made her sit out of the next 20 rounds. Of course, we had to make concessions ourselves."

"What'd you give her?"

"We wanted to make her feel safe. If at our own expense, then so be it. We promised her half a million from me, a half million from Karen and a half million from Lee, all to be paid after the game ends." My very next thought was "Oh crap, they've made a mistake." but then I realize that the money would be paid after the game was over. In other words, this deal they just struck wouldn't count against any of them for the purposes of declaring a best loser. With only 7 rounds now left to play for Wilma, the absolute best she can hope for once she re-enters the game is another $2.1 million. But it wouldn't be fair to expect more than about $900,000, bringing her end total to $2.45 million. She was done for. All that was left to do was to decide how the game would finish. Obviously, we don't want Wilma Schilling of all people to go on to Part 4, so that means that the Hawks should progress. But at least one person from both teams must move on.

"Guess I'm moving on. Hawks win, and I'll go through."

"Dan."

"You pulled me out of hell earlier today. Only fair that I do you a favor."

"So what's the plan now?" Karen asked.

"The Hawks need a total score higher than $12 million and Dan here needs to have more money than Wilma by the end of the game, we have 20 rounds to accomplish this. The gap between Dan and Wilma is 1.4 million dollars and the Hawks have 2.9 out of the 12 million needed to win. So at least 10.5 million in total must go to the Hawks or Daniel." Over the next 20 rounds, there will be a total of $12 million at stake. I review the wording of the contract. "_I agree to cooperate with Dana Andrews and with all others who cooperate with him." _This means that even Sylvie will have to do as I say. So she'll have no choice but to go with this strategy. Plus I can always take on the debts of the losers. This strategy can't go wrong. I continue. "We have absolutely nothing to worry about." This 11th round was decided before we even went into the booths.

**Dana Andrews: **Defend

**Christopher White: **Defend

**Karen Lewis: **Defend

**Daniel Schwarz: **

"Mr. Daniel Schwarz has won $600,000."

Round 12:

**Sylvie Montaigne:**

**Dana Andrews:**

**Karen Lewis: **Defend

**Lee Floyd: **Defend

"Ms. Montaigne and Mr. Andrews have each won $300,000."

Round 16:

**Dana Andrews: **Defend

**Christopher White: **Defend

**Daniel Schwarz:**

**Lee Floyd: **Defend

Round 20:

**Dana Andrews: **

**Christopher White:**

**Karen Lewis: **Defend

**Daniel Schwarz:**

**- Halftime -**

"Ladies and Gentlemen, we have reached halftime. The current time is 18:21. We will take a 30 minute dinner break after which the second half of this game will be played. The two teams will eat in different rooms, there is to be no direct contact between opponents." A large cart of food enters the room followed by four chairs. Just like in Part 2, we were given an extravagant feast.

We discuss our strategy and review a nearby scoreboard. The Hawks have 5.9 million against the Ravens' 6.1 million. Daniel has 3.15 million as it was agreed that he would advance to Part 4 with us. If we play right, at the very worst, Schilling can get up to 200,000 each round and with seven left for her to play, that would bring her total to 2.95 million. We need 6.15 million to take her out of the picture. The next ten rounds have a total of 6 million at stake, 150,000 short but we can get that in one round. For now, we enjoy our meal and our 30 minutes expire without so much as the cart or chairs being recollected. The game continued from Round 21 to Round 30. At that point, the standings were as follows:

**Hawks: $11,900,000**

Sylvie Montaigne: $3,450,000

Grace Black: $3,200,000

Dana Andrews: $2,750,000

Christopher White: $2,500,000

**Ravens: $6,100,000**

Daniel Schwarz: $3,650,000

Wilma Schilling: $1,250,000

Lee Floyd: $600,000

Karen Lewis: $600,000

At last, the final ten rounds were upon us, meaning that we had to employ our lockout strategy against Wilma. Since everyone was familiar with the strategy, it didn't matter who entered the vault, so we maintained the current order, making it Grace and Sylvie's turn in the vault. They were opposed by Daniel and Wilma. As the five minutes began, Wilma made a public announcement to the rest of us.

"As you know, the Ravens, my teammates, made a deal with me to leave this game between Rounds 11 and 30 in exchange for a total of one and a half million dollars, to be paid after the game ends. I also understand that Mr. Schwarz has been kind enough to continue to risk his life as he knew it and advance to Part 4 with the Hawks. As the situation stands, I cannot dream of hoping to pull a rabbit out of the hat and make it past this game. It's just... I have something to confess." A brief silence is the only thing that breaks her monologue. _What does she have to confess? Someone like her has nothing to regret! _"What happened at the end of the Sacrifice game that you played?"

"We had to buy the votes needed to get here. But Dana was kind enough to give us back the money we paid for those votes, all of us ended the game with the debts we carried from Part 2, except Nolan, he was given 2 million dollars to cover the debts he incurred in the Intermission. Dana won so he was given an extra million." Grace answered.

"Like Dana, I had a friend in my Intermission group. I did everything for my friend like Dana did for his. I bought my votes, sold them for more, and ended up with all the money. At the game's end, I had 21 votes and he had 19. Like Dana, I gave him the 2 million he so desperately needed, but my similarity to Mr. Andrews ends there. I took the rest of the money with me here and left everyone there to either win their game or gain the 2 million they owe." _That crazy girl! _"But that means that I hold the key to your liberation. As of this moment, I have gained 5 million dollars in the Confidence Trick. If you end your relationship with Mr. Andrews, I promise you enough money to cover your debts, win or lose. So, where do you want to end up when this is all said and done?" _An offer that can't be refused. Her joker's out._ "Just sign on the dotted line." She held several sheets of paper while her hand reached behind her ear. When she pulled her hand out of her snow-colored hair, a black pen was now in hand. Grace immediately came up to Wilma and took the pen. Sylvie gave Grace a stern reminder of the terms of the contract that they signed before Round 10, informing her that were she to make a deal with Wilma, she would have to repay $2 million. Nevertheless, she read the paper.

_I hereby end all outstanding contracts with either Dana Andrews or Sylvie Montaigne and agree to allow Wilma Schilling to sponsor my participation in Part 3 of the Confidence Trick. I will receive enough money to cover any and all debts incurred in the Confidence Trick. _

In Grace's case, this was the one million dollars she lost in Part 2. Since Wilma had five million on her at this moment, she could sponsor Grace's play and still come out a winner. Grace had won $3.2 million so far here, but forfeited one million for breaking the contract and another million for its termination, putting her total debts at $2.8 million. Wilma had gained $1.55 million out of the $3 million needed to break even, but is expecting an additional $1.5 million from the deal she made to sit out for half of the game, giving her an additional surplus of $50,000 and her total winnings of $5.05 million. Subtracting the $2.8 million used to sponsor Grace, she could walk away with $2.25 million. I ran through everyone's current situation. Chris, Karen, Daniel and Lee all owed up to a million dollars, meaning that a couple of them can betray to her side and all come out as winners. A glance at the clock lets me know that there are three minutes left until they need to get into the booths. As the only person in the vault other than Sylvie, Grace or Wilma, Daniel could shut out anyone else who wanted to make a deal with the devil. He walked toward Wilma and Grace handed him the pen and another copy of the contract. He read the contract carefully, staring at its one clause for the longest minute of his life.

"If you think I can sign this paper... you know nothing about human nature." Daniel dropped the pen and tore the contract in two.


	31. It's In Your Hands

"Earlier today, I was pulled out of Hell. It was Dana Andrews who gave me a chance to stay in the game. When he gave back our money from the Intermission, I knew instantly that he was incorruptible! I can't let myself turn on him."

"Well, your loss." Knowing that there was nothing more to be said, the four moved to their booths. A minute passed and the round was over.

"We will now reveal the actions taken by the players."

**Sylvie ****Montaigne****: **Attack Schilling

**Grace ****Black****: **

**Wilma ****Schilling****: **Defend

**Daniel ****Schwarz****: **

"Miss Black, Ms. Schilling and Mr. Schwarz have each won $200,000."

As Grace and Sylvie rejoined us at our headquarters, I took this opportunity to confront Grace.

"Grace, exactly what came over you when you signed that deal with Wilma?"

"Dana, in Part 1, we both broke even. In Part 2, I was betrayed and became the only one to come out of that game a loser. In the Intermission, you were so kind and all of us were able to break even with one exception. My debts to that point totaled a million dollars on the mark. Here in Part 3, I've managed to gain $400,000. But Sylvie's dumb contract meant that I needed an extra $2 million on top of the $3 million each of us was given. So when Wilma offered to make up the difference with her own money, it was only in my nature for me to accept."

"Round 32 of 40 will start in a few moments. Teams, please select two players to enter the vault."

"Well you better get going, Dana."

"Are you coming, Chris?" Sylvie asked.

"No, whatever's happening between you and Wilma is important to you."

For this 32nd round of this game, Sylvie and I opposed Wilma and Karen. Almost immediately Karen, Sylvie and I assembled next to one another and discussed our strategy for the round. This was no surprise to me. For Wilma to sponsor Karen, she would need to match our offer to cover her debts. This amounted to $1 million from Part 2, and $2.9 million from today, totaling $3.9 million. After agreeing to sponsor Grace, Wilma had about two and a half million to spare. Therefore, there was risk to sponsoring Karen. The plan this round was for us to play a game of Rock-Paper-Scissors. Winner attack, loser defend, middleman stand. No reactions, and though a winner or loser is decided, that person will pretend to play the second iteration of the game. On top of that, the actions will again be done with only a 50% probability. That way, Wilma can't decode our predicted actions. The game was quick, about ten seconds. We then went into our booths and locked in our choices.

"We will now reveal the actions taken by the players."

**Dana ****Andrews****: **Attack Schilling

**Sylvie ****Montaigne****: **

**Karen ****Lewis****: **

**Wilma ****Schilling****: **Defend

"Ms. Montaigne, Ms. Lewis and Ms. Schilling have each won $200,000. Congratulations."

Sylvie and I returned to our headquarters where I did the math. Schilling can gain up to $300,000 per appearance at the very worst. She still has the 34th, 35th, 37th, 38th and 40th rounds to play. 5 rounds left for her times 300,000 equals one and a half million. She trailed our insider Daniel by 2.2 million. Wait just one minute! If all three of us stand, then the most that Schilling can get in one round goes down to 200,000 for a maximum gain of one million. Mission Accomplished!

"Round 33 of 40 will begin in a few moments. Teams, please select two players to enter the vault."

"Deal me out. I've got enough money." Grace reacted. This was to be expected when she made a deal with the devil herself.

**Dana ****Andrews****:**

**Christopher ****White****:**

**Karen ****Lewis****:**

**Lee ****Floyd****:**

"All players in the vault have won $150,000 each." With that, we returned to headquarters where Grace and Sylvie waited for us.

"It's a deal, Miss Black." As we came in, Sylvie came up to us, looking as though she was indifferent about the deal she just made with Grace.

"You might want to read this." Sylvie handed me the contract she signed with Grace.

_Any __penalties __resulting __from __broken __contracts __between __myself __and __Dana __Andrews __or __Sylvie __Montaigne __are __annulled__._

_The __agreement __between __myself __and __Wilma __Schilling __is __hereby __annulled __and __the __previous __agreement __between __the __party __representing __myself __and __the __party __representing __Dana __Andrews __and __Sylvie __Montaigne __is __here by __renewed __in __its __previous __state__. _

_I __will __receive __enough __money __to __cover __all __outstanding __debts __incurred __during __the __Confidence __Trick__. __As __a __gift__, __I __will __accept __an __additional__ $200,000 __at __the __end __of __the __game__. _

_I __agree __to __continue __past __Part__ 3 __of __the __Confidence __Trick __without __this __sponsorship__._

_-__Grace __Black_

"You're back on our side, Grace?"

"Yep. Don't tell Wilma. She had a plan too."

"Round 34 of 40 will begin in a few moments. Teams, please select two players to enter the vault."

"Well, Grace, I assume it's you and Chris?" I asked.

"You got that right." Grace and Chris left our HQ for the vault, leaving only me and Sylvie. Save a brief exchange between Grace and Wilma, the players proceeded immediately to their booths. The monitor cut to its regular 60 second countdown. _60... 59... 58... 57... _The minute passed by like the sun and the moon, but passed like a frame in a video. _0._

"We will now reveal the actions taken by the players."

**Grace ****Black****:** Defend

**Christopher ****White****:**

**Wilma ****Schilling****: **Attack White

**Lee ****Floyd****:**

"Ms. Schilling and Ms. Floyd have each won $300,000." _Grace __defended__?! __If __all __of __us __stood__, __then __this __game __was __a __lock__!_

"Relax, Dana. One misstep and our plan will fall apart."

"We have this game locked up!"

"If Schilling catches wind of this, then she'll offer a higher price."

"Sylvie..."

"Schilling has four rounds left to play. She needs at least 1.9 million dollars to pass Daniel in the wildcard race. Under the worst of circumstances, with Grace still on her side, she can get 1.2 million."

"You just gave me a plan, Sylvie." Just then, Grace and Chris came back from the vault.

"You did good, Miss Black. I'm thinking about renegotiating that contract of yours. What do you say to one million dollars on top of covering your debts?"

"I'm all ears, Ms. Montaigne."

"Schilling won't give you a dime if you betray her. So all you have to do is stand ground for just two rounds and she'll be... no wait a second..."

"I have an idea! Let's take Wilma through to Part 4"

"Dana! She's been our target this whole game! What are you thinking!?" Sylvie's train of thought was interrupted by my outlandish idea. Well, she thought it was outlandish.

"Wilma has won five million dollars up to this point. She'll get another 450,000 at the end of this game plus whatever she wins from now to the end of the game. On top of that, she won't have to pay Grace a dime because she just ended their little deal. If she loses the wildcard to Daniel, she still have that five plus million when she leaves. But if we take her to Part 4, she'll have won about 150,000 as part of the game's result."

"Meaning she'll only have to pay 75-k to get out. You didn't think about that, did you? That six million will still be hers!"

"Round 35 of 40 will begin in a few moments. Teams, please select two players to enter the vault."

"Well, I'll be seeing you." Grace exited the room.

"I have and idea of my own. Chris, Dana, can you both trust me?"

"It's in your hands."


	32. It's a Done Deal

"Well, I'll be seeing you." Grace exited the room.

"I have and idea of my own. Chris, Dana, can you both trust me?"

"It's in your hands." Without a response, Sylvie left with Grace for the vault. Their opposition for this round was Wilma Schilling and Karen Lewis. I had no idea what Grace was getting at when she walked and held Sylvie by her shoulder. Maybe she was a man in a past life. Hold it, I think she's trying to make herself look dependant on Sylvie. Every one of us saw this apparent display of affection.

"Ah, Ms. Wilma Schilling, my worst enemy. Earlier in this game, you made an offer that you thought couldn't be refused. You offered to pay the debts of as many players as you saw fit. Your goal was to come out of this game with as much money as possible. You claim to have come into this game with 5 million dollars and offered to take someone out of this twisted game."

"And Grace pounced on the opportunity. Who wouldn't want to have to pay 2.6 million? From the look of things, she turned her back on me. But that's her loss. She'll have to get the money in Part 4. I'll have 5.6 million in the very worst of cases. Meanwhile, the seven of you put together will bear the 6 million in debts that you came here with plus another 650,000 from this game. That comes to 6.65 million!"

"And with that, you've brought me to my last resort." Sylvie took a neatly folded paper from her pocket, unraveled it, and spoke its words.

"By signing this document, I agree to accept all profits or losses taken by Sylvie Montaigne plus the $3 million to be returned at the end of the game, less any money promised by Miss Black's sponsorship. Effectively, Ms. Montaigne's score for this game will be transferred to my score for the game. 50% of this score will go toward the settlement of debts of the players who fail to qualify for Part 4 while the other 50% will belong to me. In exchange, I agree not to forfeit my place in Part 4 of the Confidence Trick should I gain one. In the event that I do not earn a place in Part 4, the Raven with the best score will forfeit their place in Part 4 to me."

"So what's all that supposed to mean?"

"It means that I'm giving you almost one and a half million dollars as a gift to you if you pay at least some of the debts of your 'friends'."

"So you're saying that if I throw them a bone, I get paid. You are so desperate. I didn't lose here and I won't lose the next game. You've got yourself a deal." Sylvie handed Wilma the contract and Wilma wrote her signature next to Sylvie's. "How will you cover for your friends with only one and a half million? Schwarz has 650,000, but what of Floyd and Lewis?"

"Other than winning big in Part 4,... I have no idea."

"What?" Sylvie confused everyone with her neglect for the other players. _Some __of __us __can__'__t __wait until then__. __Open __your __eyes __Sylvie__! __I __had __a __reason __to __give __everyone __back __our __money __and __wipe __out __my __winnings __from __the __Intermission__!_

"I think I do. When this game's over, I will forfeit the money I've won here including the three million needed to break even. And I plan on holding myself to it." Grace took a folded, blank sheet of paper and knelt as she opened its two halves. "You still have that pen, Sylvie?" Sylvie handed Grace her pen without any other response. Meanwhile, Schilling left the scene and took one of the four booths. With one minute past and one person in the booths, that left three minutes in the round. She didn't need all that time to write one sentence, affix her signature and read the contract aloud for everyone to hear.

_To __the __players __who __fail __to __advance __to __Part__ 4 __of __the __Confidence __Trick __, __I __hereby __forfeit __my __score __for __Part__ 3 __of __the __Confidence __Trick__, __plus __any __bonuses __or __penalties __added __by __other __contracts__. _

_-__Grace __Black_

"Oops, forgot something." Grace knelt down and tore the document along its short side to create two half-sheets. She then wrote the exact same sentence again and added her signature below the sentence.

"It's a done deal." Grace walked to Karen and entrusted her with one copy of the contract. Sylvie, Grace and Karen entered the booths together and the clock immediately expired. They had 60 seconds to input their action for the round. This was merely a formality now.

"We will now reveal the actions taken by the players."

**Wilma ****Schilling****: **Attack Black

**Karen ****Lewis****: **

**Grace ****Black****:**

**Sylvie ****Montaigne****:**

"Ms. Schilling, Ms. Lewis and Ms. Montaigne have each won $200,000." With that win, the debts of the three players destined not to continue to Part 4 were as follows: Karen had scored 1.15 million but forfeited a half million to Wilma along with her two teammates. This left her with debts totaling 3.35 million. Daniel scored 3.85 million, leaving him with debts totaling 650,000 at the end of the day. Finally, Lee had 1.05 million, but that left her with a debt of 3.45 million. Add that up and they have to pay 7.45 million. But with that deal Sylvie made, she gave away 1.525 million to Wilma and another 1.525 million to pay off the other Ravens. Grace scored 3.4 million and now had only 600,000 in debts, giving her 800,000 in Sylvie's sponsorship. But she put that 4.2 million toward the Ravens' debts. 7.45 million less 5.725 million equaled 1.725 million. _1,725,000... _I start to think about that number before Grace and Sylvie return. I know what to do now.

"Good job back there." Nothing seems to sum up my opinion of their actions any better than that. "This game's over. Everyone leaving will have their debts paid off and everyone that wants to move on will move on."

"Well you can't just give up 1.7 million dollars. Schilling went to the vault two rounds in a row."

"Round 36 of 40 will begin in a few moments. Please select two players to enter the vault."

"I'll go." Chris and I both offered to enter the vault at the same time. The outcome of this round was of no surprise to us. Once we saw Lee and Karen, the four of us entered the booths and input our actions.

"We will now reveal the actions taken by the players."

**Dana ****Andrews****:** Defend

**Christopher ****White****: **Defend

**Lee ****Floyd****:**

**Karen ****Lewis****:**

"Ms. Floyd and Ms. Lewis have each won $300,000." Another $600,000 that we won't have to pay back. After we came back from the vault, we briefly discussed giving Grace and Sylvie two more runs at the vault. Every dollar that Grace won would reduce the sponsorship required from Sylvie. If Schilling were to strike at Grace or Sylvie, that would reduce the debt of the other Ravens by 300,000. If she were to strike at her teammate, this figure would become 200,000 but Schilling would lose the 100,000 she would have taken from Sylvie. Since Schilling had three rounds left to play, that left one round to give a full 600,000 to the other Ravens. 600,000 + 200,000 * 3 = 1.2 million, we could pay back the Ravens' debts with money to burn. When I explained this plan to Sylvie and Grace, they were all ears and it was all over.

Round 37 ended as follows:

**Sylvie ****Montaigne****:**

**Grace ****Black****:**

**Wilma ****Schilling****: **Attack Floyd

**Lee ****Floyd****:**

Round 38:

**Sylvie ****Montaigne****:**

**Grace ****Black****:**

**Wilma ****Schilling****: **Attack Lewis

**Karen ****Lewis****:**

Round 39:

**Dana ****Andrews****: **Defend

**Christopher ****White****:** Defend

**Lee ****Floyd****:**

**Karen ****Lewis****:**

And finally, Round 40:

**Sylvie ****Montaigne****:**

**Grace ****Black****:**

**Wilma ****Schilling****: **Attack Floyd

**Lee ****Floyd****:**

"This game is now completed. We will now display the final scores for all players." We turned to face the screen that would show the final score.

_**Individual **__**Totals**_

_Lee __Floyd__, __Ravens__: $1,650,000_

_Karen __Lewis__, __Ravens__: $1,750,000_

_Christopher __White__, __Hawks__: $2,650,000_

_Wilma __Schilling__, __Ravens__: $2,750,000_

_Dana __Andrews__, __Hawks__: $2,900,000_

_Daniel __Schwarz__, __Ravens__: $3,850,000_

_Grace __Black__, __Hawks__: $4,000,000_

_Sylvie __Montaigne__, __Hawks__: $4,450,000_

_**Team **__**Result**_

_Hawks__ $14,000,000 - $10,000,000 __Ravens_

_**Advancing **__**Players**__**:**_

_Sylvie __Montaigne_

_Grace __Black_

_Dana __Andrews_

_Christopher __White_

_Daniel __Schwarz_

"Part 4 of the Confidence Trick will be held on February 26th at venue will be given in your invitation. We hope to see the five of you there. All players, please report to the checkout desk for your payment."

At the checkout desk, all of the binding documents that were signed during the game were shown to the CT. Lee, Karen and Daniel owed 3,000,000 dollars going into this game and scored 7,250,000 between the three, out of the break even point of 9,000,000. They would have owed 4,750,000 dollars. But they paid Wilma 1,500,000 to sit out for half of the game, received 2,125,000 from Sylvie and an additional 4,200,000 from Grace. They had 6,325,000 dollars to cover 6,250,000 in debts, a surplus of 75,000! But that meant that Grace owed four million dollars and Sylvie three million dollars. Daniel had won a spot in Part 4 along with me, Grace, Sylvie and Chris, but according to our deal, Wilma replaced him.

"You have agreed to replace whichever Raven wins the wildcard seat in Part Four. According to the rules, Mr. Schwarz will not receive any money that you may win, nor will he take on any debt that you may incur. You have agreed not to forfeit that seat in Part Four. I hope that you understand what you are doing."

"I'll be just fine with that. Thank you, I will see you in two weeks." She exited the building without saying another word. Thus ended Part Three of the Confidence Trick.


	33. Class Warfare

_Sylvie Montaigne_

_22:30, February 12_

Before I opened the door to my apartment, I checked my mail. Nothing surprising, just the invitation to Part 4 of the Confidence Trick. I open the envelope and read the message from the CT.

**Confidence Trick Part Four**

_Part Four of the Confidence Trick will take place at the former building of Plum Field High School on February 26 at 13:00. On that day, we will expect you to be prepared to leave your home at 11:30. This Part of the Confidence Trick will also be a team game. This will be a 2 on 2 match. Your teammate for this Part will be: Grace Black. Your opponents will be: Takayoshi Carlton and Naoki Kamisaki. We hope to see you again._

Dana was put into a different section for this Part. He'll probably play with Chris. Grace and I were in the same section as Dana and Chris for Part 3, where we were one team. From his gameplay in the Intermission, I have no concerns for his gameplay come the 26th. With Chris on his side, I have only Grace to worry about.

_Dana Andrews_

_22:30, February 12_

Finally, I'm done with Part 3. Karen, Daniel and Lee were removed from the Confidence Trick and no money was lost from this game. Am I glad they only do this on Saturdays. I'll eat and sleep, nothing to do until Monday. I turn on the lights in my room. _Not again..._

**Confidence Trick Part Four**

_Part Four of the Confidence Trick will take place at the former building of Walker Private School on February 26 at 13:00. On that day, we will expect you to be prepared to leave your home at 11:15. This Part of the Confidence Trick will also be a team game. This will be a 2 on 2 match. Your teammate for this Part will be: Christopher White. Your opponents will be: Kayla Steiger and Ashley Baelz. We hope to see you again._

-2 weeks later-

_Sylvie Montaigne_

_11:15, February 26_

"...34, 37, 40, 44 for black. And 2, 5, 8, 12, 16, ... 32, 38 plus six and a half makes 44 and a half for white. White wins by half of a point." I clear the board and drop the stones into the bin before I close it and put the board away.

*knock, knock* _Must be the CT here for me. _I open the door and answer their call.

"Sylvie Montaigne?"

"I'm ready." There is a taxi waiting for me. I take my seat and close the door. The man who knocked for me took the driver's seat and the vehicle started to move. After 30 minutes of silence, the driver started a conversation.

"So, why are you in the Confidence Trick?"

"I know some of the people running the show. I'm the one they're after. Why else would it be timed to the day I got out of jail?"

"I know how you feel. Man, did I get what was coming my way. When that scheme fell apart two and a half years ago, I thought I'd lost it all. I thought about my life for those thirty months. Didn't take me half an hour to realize that I deserved this. Then I watched some of the games that were played. Part One had some feel guilty and give up their winnings to pay off the losers' debts, no surprise. But one of the sections in the Intermission really lit up against the others. Mr. Andrews won and could have ran to safety with about seven and a half million. But he was kind enough to walk away from all that and try it again in Part Three. The Lord has risen, I tell you!"

"A good theory, but if someone who actually wants the money gets their hands on it, they're going to hang on to it. No problem, that's how I came to owe you guys that three million."

"There's something special about today's game, but we'll climb that mountain when we get to it. For now, just sit right there."

-50 minutes later, 12:35-

"Well, Ms. Montaigne, we're here. Follow me." We exited the car and entered the building. He led me downstairs to the basement floor. I saw an open space with folded tables. This must be a cafeteria. We waited for the other players to arrive. Didn't take very long, six more came into the room followed by the croupier for whatever game we were to play. I can't help but look at Grace's outfit. She had her hair trimmed and wore a tuxedo. _What is with this girl? What is she trying to accomplish?_

"Welcome all to Part Four of the Confidence Trick. As mentioned in your invitations, this will be a 2 on 2 battle. However, the two players advancing to Part Five may not be from the same team. This is because this game will be about who can win the most money here today. There will be two one on one games followed immediately by a four player game. Each of you will be loaned three million dollars. But as a reward for making it this far, we will only collect two million dollars from each player."

"You mean..." Grace interrupted briefly, tempted by the cash.

"Yes I do. There will be up to four million dollars on the table for the taking. After today's games, we will not so much as touch that four million."

" 'Up to'? That four million is ours!"

"You will see what we mean. For now, each team will designate one player as 'Red' and one player as 'Blue'. You will have thirty seconds to make this choice."

"Grace, you'll take Blue?"

"Sure." Didn't seem to matter.

"Time is up. Will the Blue players stand to my left and will the Red players stand to my right." We did exactly that, a mere formality. I stood next to a Takayoshi Carlton while, Grace stood next to a Naoki Kamisaki.

"Since we consider it the right of all players in a section to see all of the games played today, we will play the games at different times." He pulled a coin out of his front pocket. "This coin has a red side and a blue side. I will flip this coin and the side that lands facing up will indicate who plays first." He threw the coin in the air and it flipped end over end until caught by the croupier's right hand. The croupier slapped the coin onto his right hand and lifted his left to reveal the coin.

"The coin has landed Red. Therefore, Ms. Sylvie Montaigne and Mr. Takayoshi Carlton will play their game first. There is a table behind me, if you two will sit at that table please." The croupier put the coin in a pocket in his pants. As we sat at the table and the others gathered around us, the croupier took a red envelope and a blue envelope from the same pocket that the coin came from. "This red envelope contains the instructions for today's Red game. We call it..." He tore open the red envelope and read the contents. "Class Warfare."

"Class Warfare refers to the struggle between the rich and the poor. This game will attempt to reflect the war between the government, the working class and the destitute. Here are the rules:"

- There are five cards, one Government, three Proletariat, and one Serf

- At the beginning of each round, the cards are scrambled and one card is given to each player

- Each player is given two choices, switch their card with a random card from those unused for $100,000 or stand with their original card at no cost. This decision is made "under the table" meaning that neither player will know what the other has chosen until both have made and confirmed their choice with the two buttons in front of them. To eliminate human error as a factor in this game, the player's decision will be displayed on a screen positioned to only face the player making the decision.

- If a player switches, $50,000 is added to the pot and $50,000 is returned to the croupier

- After any switches are made, if only Proletariat cards have been discarded or there was no switch, either player may concede at the cost of $50,000, this choice is also made under the table. If one player concedes, the money is paid to the opponent. If both players concede, the money is forfeited to the croupier.

- If either the Government or Serf cards have been discarded, the two cards are immediately compared without the option to concede.

- The Government defeats the Proletariat which defeats the Serf which defeats the Government

- The loser must place $250,000 in the pot to be paid to the winner

- If there is a draw, neither player contributes to the pot, the current contents of the pot are returned to the croupier

- The game lasts for 10 rounds, but if either player runs out of money, the segment will end

"Are there any questions?... None, then to familiarize you with the game as it is played, we will play two practice rounds."

"Here you are." A suited man came up to the croupier and gave him two boxes. The croupier opened one of the boxes and set five small slabs on the table. Three had a picture of dozens of people and the word "Proletariat" superimposed, one had a picture of a plump man throwing money in the air and the word "Government", and the other had a man striking the ground with a pickaxe, the "Serf". The croupier scrambled these "cards" face down around the table for some time and slid one to me and one to Carlton. We looked at our cards. I held a Proletariat card. Having been through at least three games, neither of us expected a tell from the other. Here were my thoughts on the game:

1. There is a 50% chance that Carlton is holding one of the other Proletariat cards. This leaves one of each card on the table. This leaves us the choice of settling for a draw or going for the win.

2. There is a 25% chance that Carlton is holding the Serf card. This leaves two Proletariat cards and the Government card on the table. In this case, Carlton would have to switch to have a 1/3 chance to win and a 2/3 chance of a draw.

3. There is a 25% chance that Carlton is holding the Government card. This leaves two Proletariat cards and the Serf card on the table. I would be expected to switch in this case and have the same probabilities as in case 2.

In cases 2 and 3, if both of us switch, a win, loss and draw are equally likely. In case 1, the odds of winning are 1 to 1, or 50%. Of course, I wouldn't know my opponents card, so I wouldn't take any unnecessary risk. I choose to stand and confirm.

"Both players have made their decisions. Neither player has chosen to switch their card. We will now give you the option of conceding this round." This comes down to simple math. If I fold, I'll lose $50,000, if I stay, I'll either win $250,000 (1/5), lose $250,000 (1/5) or push (3/5), an expected value of zero. I make my choice and confirm.

"Both players have confirmed their choices. Show your cards." Carlton flipped over a Government card against my Proletariat card.

"Mr. Carlton has won this round. He would have been awarded $250,000 from Ms. Montaigne. With that, we will move to the second and final practice round. To prevent any cheating by marking or reintroducing cards, the cards used in the previous round will be..." The croupier took one of the cards and snapped it in two. "...destroyed." He repeated this with the other cards and another suited man gathered the pieces and left the cafeteria. The croupier opened the other box and scrambled the five cards on the table. Carlton and I were both dealt one card each. I look at the card I've been dealt. The Serf. It can beat the Government, but the odds of the Government being in his hand are 1 in 4. If he has the Government, it would be news if he decided to throw away a 3 in 4 chance at a win. If he has a Proletariat card and throws it out, then he'll have an expected value of zero minus the $100,000 spent on the switch. My choice is easy.

"Both players have made their decisions. Ms. Montaigne has chosen to switch her card for $100,000" I was dealt a new card, a Proletariat.

"Since Ms. Montaigne has discarded the Serf, concession will not be allowed. Show your cards." We both show a Proletariat card. "SInce neither of you has won the round, we would have confiscated the $100,000 placed by Ms. Montaigne. This practice session is now over."


	34. Halftime

"This practice session is now over." The croupier took the cards from the table and broke each of them in two. "Now we shall start the actual game. But first..." Two other CT officials entered the room, each holding a box. The boxes were opened.

"Here is the money that will be used for this game." There were thirty chips in each of the boxes. "Each of these chips is worth $50,000. Multiply that by 30 and you each have $1.5 million. We will give the blue players their $1.5 million at the start of their game and an additional $1.5 million to each of the four of you at the start of our final game." Thirty chips per player were put on the table and a third official carried ten new boxes to give to the croupier.

"Is everyone ready to start this game?"

"I'm ready."

"Ready."

"Then I will ask the Blue players to leave the premises, you will be escorted to this building's main office upstairs." When the croupier received a call confirming that Grace and Kamisaki were in the office, the game started.

"Round 1 will start. There will be no timeouts, but you may take as long as you wish to make decisions regarding the game. You may even talk amongst yourselves." The croupier opened one of the boxes to reveal the cards to be used for this round. He laid them in a row to confirm that there were three Proletariat, one Government and one Serf. The cards were then laid face down and scrambled and after some time, one was given to Carlton and one to me. I held a Proletariat. This card has a 50% chance of a draw, a 25% chance for a win and a 25% chance for a loss. Had I held a Government card, it would have been a 75-25 favorite, no reason to trade that now, is there. So I threw in my Proletariat. Carlton makes his move.

"Both players have made their choices. Ms. Montaigne has decided to switch her Proletariat card. This will cost $100,000, 2 chips." The croupier handed me another card. Another Proletariat. He clearly has the Government card, I'll fold here.

"Does either player wish to concede this round to the opponent? Make your selection." I fold and wait for Carlton's decision.

"Ms. Montaigne has chosen to concede this round. She will forfeit one extra chip. Of the two chips she used to switch her card, one will be paid to the croupier and one to Mr. Carlton. The score stands at 32-27 to Mr. Carlton. We will start Round 2." Another box was opened and new cards were dealt. Another Proletariat for me.

"Does either player wish to switch their card?" By this point, I realized that you can't be predictable. Once you get predictable, your opponent will have an easy time with you in this game. What if I had a Serf in the last round? That would have been a win for me. If that scenario were repeated all ten rounds, 2/3 of the rounds would have me losing $150,000, $100,000 to Carlton and the other third would have me winning $250,000 from Carlton, of which $50,000 would have to be paid back. 450,000 divided by 3 minus 250,000 times two thirds equals a loss of $16,666 per round against Carlton's score, just over 3 chips. Might as well be a tie, meaning this game would come down to pure luck. But I think I have this game won.

"Both players have made their decisions. Both players have decided to switch their cards at the cost of two chips." We flipped over the cards we switched out. Two Proletariats. The croupier dealt one more card to each of us. I set mine aside without seeing it and confirmed my decision not to concede this round. Needless to say, Carlton was shaken up by this move.

"Does either player wish to concede this round to their opponent?" A rational person in Carlton's position would stick this out to the end. Such a person would lose either $50,000 guaranteed or have a 50-50 shot at winning or losing a quarter of a million. With no tell from me for him to go on, the odds are truly 50-50.

"Neither player has chosen to concede this round. Please reveal your cards." Carlton flips over a Serf, I had a Proletariat.

"Ms. Montaigne has won this round with a Proletariat against Mr. Carlton's Serf. Mr. Carlton will forfeit five chips to Ms. Montaigne. Two of the four chips used to switch cards will be forfeited to the croupier and the other two will go to the winner, Ms. Montaigne. The score is 32-25 to Ms. Montaigne. At this point, we will begin Round 3." The croupier opened another box of cards to start the round. He did his usual confirmation and scramble of the cards in the deck and we were dealt one card each. I set aside my card without seeing it and just confirm my choice to stick with this card. Carlton couldn't resist the temptation to peek at his. After a couple minutes of deliberation, he finally decided to not switch his card.

"Both players have made their choices. Mr. Carlton has decided to switch his card at the cost of $100,000." Mr. Carlton, if I may have your card. Carlton flipped over his Proletariat and was given another card.

"Now, does either player wish to concede this round to their opponent?" Again, I make it my choice to stick it out to the end of every round. As I confirm my choice, Carlton sets aside his card without a peek and decides not to concede the round. He must have caught on to my strategy.

"Neither player has chosen to concede this round. Please reveal your cards." I flip over the Government opposing Carlton's Proletariat.

"Ms. Montaigne has won this round with the Government against the Proletariat. Mr. Carlton will forfeit five chips to his opponent. Of the two chips spent on switching cards, one will be awarded to Ms. Montaigne and the other will be returned to the croupier. This makes the current score 37-18 to Ms. Montaigne."

"Just you wait, Montaigne, I'll win." Carlton then fell silent.

"No you can't, I have this game won. Look at the score. I have 37 and you have 18. If I concede every round from here on and you don't, the score will be 30-25. I have no interest in the money and there are so many chances for us to lose this four million, so I'll help you out when these games are over. How much do you owe?"

"Shit... since I've lost this game, about $285,000. My friend Naoki owes $1.6 million."

"Round 4 will start." The croupier opened another box and scrambled the cards. We were given one card each. We set aside our cards while the croupier asked us if we wanted to switch. Luckily, we had all the time we'll ever need to finish this conversation.

"How much do _you _owe?"

"$2.8 million, but that's none of your concern. We still have 55 chips between us, that comes out to $2.75 million, since we'll have to give back a million from each game we play, I'll give you the $750,000 left over from this game at the end of the day. I actually want to go through to Part 5 and the top two overall advance."

"How do I know you'll give us the $750,000?"

"Once the game ends, the results as of the end of the game will be tabulated and only those results will count when deciding who will progress. I will personally give you all of the chips I have on the table. The result will be 30-25 on paper, but you'll have all of the money." Carlton still didn't seem to trust me. I still didn't look at my card and had no intention of switching or conceding.

Round 4: Carlton did not switch his card or concede.  
>Round 5: Same as round 4.<br>Round 6: Same as round 4 again.

"I think I trust you, but I'm still armed to the teeth in case you try anything stupid." A couple rounds later, all of his doubts were dissolved. The 7th, 8th, 9th and 10th rounds ended in four wins by concession by Carlton.

"All 10 rounds have been completed. The final chip count is as follows: Sylvie Montaigne: 30 chips, Takayoshi Carlton: 25 chips. We will take a 30 minute break before starting the Blue game. In the meantime, you will be escorted to this building's main office upstairs." Before we did that, our chips were collected and the scores tabulated.

Sylvie Montaigne: $1,500,000  
>Takayoshi Carlton: $1,250,000<p>

"Let me remind you that the player's total score over two legs will determine which two players advance. Follow me."

**- 13:20, ****At ****the ****office**** -**

The Red Game has finished, follow me for the Blue Game.


	35. Door Prize

_Grace Black_

_13:25, February 26_

"We will not disclose the result of the Red Game to preserve the fairness of this game. As you know, we will now play the Blue Game in this Part of the Confidence Trick." The croupier took a blue envelope from his pocket. "This blue envelope contains the instructions for tiday's Blue game," The envelope was torn open. "Door Prize."

"Door prizes are given by lottery and contested by guests at a large gathering, say a birthday party for an affluent person. But this game has no random factor, it's more like Hide and Seek. Allow me to explain the rules."

- One player is randomly selected to become the dealer

- This player is given a gold colored token with the word "WINNER!" printed on both sides.

- At the start of each round, the dealer will select one of three boxes to put the "WINNER!" token in, the non-dealer will be unable to see which box the dealer has selected

-The dealer is allowed to wager on any combination of the three boxes. She may wager on one, two or all three. The dealer's total wager may be up to the amount that she currently holds in this game

- The non-dealer may request that a box without the token be revealed publicly at the cost of 25% of the dealer's wager across all three boxes. The revealed box is randomly selected from the two without the winning token.

- The non-dealer makes her wagers. She may only wager on one box and must wager a sum at least equal to the dealer's total wager.

- The boxes are revealed. All of the money that was wagered is divided between the players pro rata based on the amount that each of the players wagered on the winning box. If there is no money wagered on the winning box, then the round is voided and restarted. In the restarted round, the dealer must wager on the winning box.

- The dealer and non-dealer switch roles for the next round

- The game lasts 10 rounds unless someone runs out of money

- Players may communicate between rounds

"Are there any questions?... None, then to familiarize you with the game as it is played, we will play one practice round with each player as dealer. Does anyone volunteer to start as dealer?"

"I will." The minute I said this, two suits walked in each holding an open case which held 150 chips.

"This is the money that you will use for this game, One hundred fifty gaming tokens each worth ten thousand dollars. Each of you will start with one and a half million dollars." As he said this, a third suit came in with a pair of earmuffs and a blindfold. "These serve to prevent the non-dealer from inferring in any way what moves the dealer has made. Mr. Kamisaki, if you will put these on." Naoki put the blindfold over his eyes and the earmuffs over his ears. "Mr. Kamisaki, if you can hear me, tell me which hand I have on my shoulder." Silence. The croupier placed a disc with the word "WINNER!" written on it onto the table. "Miss Black, select the winning box and make your wagers." The boxes were numbered 1, 2, and 3. "Your opponent will not see the order in which you made the wagers." I put the disc into box #3 and wager 20 tokens ($200,000) each on boxes 1, 2, and 3. "Are those your wagers?"

"Yes." The croupier removed the blindfold and earmuffs from Naoki. "You may wager on no more than two of the boxes. You may open one of the two non-winning boxes at the cost of one quarter of Miss Black's total wager of sixty chips, in this case, fifteen chips."

Naoki had two choices:

1. Wager 60 chips with 33% confidence and a return of 75% of the chips on the table (90). **Expected Value**: (90x1/3)-60=-30 chips, -$300,000

2. Spend 15 chips to reveal one of the boxes and wager 60 with 50% confidence and the same return of 90 chips. **Expected Value**: (90x1/2)-75=-30 chips, -$300,000

In the long run, neither strategy has an advantage. But he only gets five rounds as non-dealer. To break even, he needed 2 wins with the first strategy or 3 wins with the second strategy. The second strategy is higher percentage.

"60 on Box 3." Naoki put sixty chips on Box #3. The boxes were opened and the winning token appeared under Box #3. He was just lucky, and this was a practice round.

"Box #3 is the winning box. Mr. Kamisaki wagered 60 chips on this box. Miss Black wagered 20 chips on this box. There are 40 chips wagered on losing boxes. 30 would have gone to Mr. Kamisaki and 10 would have gone to Miss Black. The score would have been 180-120 to Mr. Kamisaki after this round. We will switch roles for this second and final practice round. Miss Black, if you will put on the blindfold and earmuffs." The earmuffs go over my ears and the blindfold goes over my eyes.

...

...

...

The blindfold and earmuffs come off and I see Naoki's wagers. 40 chips on each box. He's pushed me all-in with this one. I think about the percentages and the odds.

"You may wager on no more than two of the boxes. You may open one of the two non-winning boxes at the cost of one quarter of Mr. Kamisaki's total wager of one hundred twenty chips, in this case, thirty chips. This will leave you with only ninety chips. In this case, you will go all-in." Wouldn't it be fair to prevent me from opening one of the boxes. Naoki wagered 120, I have 120.

1. Wager 120 chips with 33% confidence and a return of 75% of the chips on the table (180). **Expected Value**: (180x1/3)-120=-60 chips, -$600,000

2. Spend 30 chips to reveal one of the boxes and wager 90 with 50% confidence and a return of 145 chips. **Expected Value**: (145x1/2)-120=-47.5 chips, -$475,000

"This is a practice round, no consequences for my actions yet. Open one of the boxes." I paid 30 chips and Box #2 was opened. Empty. 50-50 now. Nothing better or worse than a blind guess.

"90 on Box #3." The boxes were opened...

"Box #3 is the winning box. Miss Black wagered 90 chips on this box and Mr. Kamisaki wagered 40 chips on this box. There are 80 chips wagered on losing boxes. 55 would have gone to Miss Black and 25 would have gone to Mr. Kamisaki. Thirty chips have been spent to even the odds. The score would have stood at 125-145 to Miss Black after two rounds. This practice session is over. We will return the chips to their initial owners and the real game will start. But first you will have three minutes to communicate before the first round of the game."

"How did you know to open a box?"

"Simply put, I had a 1 in 3 chance if I didn't and a 1 in 2 chance if I did. That reminds me. Why didn't you do that?"

"How much do you owe?"

"Why is that important?"

"There is $12 million in this Part of the Confidence Trick and they'll only take back $8 million. This game alone has $3 million on the table and only $2 million will be taken back. That's a million dollars for free. And to answer my question, I myself owe $1.6 million. My friend Takayoshi owes $290,000."

"I owe almost $4 million. My teammate Sylvie owes over $2.8 million."

"That makes over $8.5 million and we have four million to gain." We can't cover half of our debts with the extra money. I owe four million after all. Screw him, I need the money.

**Start of Game**

**Round 1**

The croupier showed the same coin used to decide who would play first. "Miss Black, since you volunteered to start as dealer in the practice rounds, you will call this coin toss." The croupier showed both sides of the coin. "Red, or Blue?"

"Blue." The croupier threw the coin in the air, caught it, and slapped it on to the back of his other hand. He lifted the throwing hand from the coin.

"It is Red. Mr. Kamisaki, you will have the choice of dealing first or last."

"I will deal last." The croupier 's assistants put the blindfold and earmuffs on to Naoki's head, leaving me to make my initial wagers and pick the winning door. Box #1, 20 chips per box.

The blindfold and earmuffs came off. "You may wager on no more than one of the boxes. You may open one of the two non-winning boxes at the cost of one quarter of Miss Black's total wager of sixty chips, in this case, fifteen chips." That's exactly what he said in the first practice round. "You must wager at least 60 chips on no more than one box."

Without any hesitation, Naoki said "Box 2, 60 chips."

A pause, then...

"It is time for the moment of truth." All three boxes were opened. Box #1, WINNER!; Box #2, empty; Box #3, empty. "Box #1 is the winning box, Miss Black was the only one to wager on that box. Therefore, she will receive all 120 chips on the table. The score stands at 210-90 to Miss Black. You have three minutes to talk amongst yourselves. Once both of you are ready, Round 2 will begin."


	36. Conquest

"CT Inc. wouldn't just give us $4 million for free, Grace. You know who gets the money spent on opening a box and evening the odds."

"It goes to CT Inc.. But as a player who cares only about her individual debts, I wouldn't be expected to care about that."

"Think, we owe $8.5 million. You owe $4 million, Sylvie owes $2.8 million plus, Takayoshi owes $290,000 and I owe $1.6 million. How did you get to where you are now?"

"Part One, I was one round away from owing $400,000. A man named Dana Andrews made an offer to force a draw and I took him up on that offer. Part Two, there were 17 of us. We formed a group of nine to lock up the win for us. I signed the contract with the name of my sister-in-law, Gordi. My victory was certain, I could have had eight million dollars. But Sylvie crossed the aisle and won for everyone else. I thought I was done. Then, I heard about the Intermission. I had a second chance, There were five people I was not familiar with when I got there."

Two minutes left, I continue. "Surprisingly, Dana came back to play. We chose six of seven to go to Part Three. I worked with everyone except Dana so that we six could move on. Seeing that we each owed a million dollars and Dana won about 200,000 that was left of his share of the prize, we voted each other to advance. But when we were offered to sell votes for the million, we couldn't refuse. But eventually, we had to buy votes or our sales to him wouldn't count and we'd have to win our million in Part Three. Eventually, Dana had 21 votes, five of us tied with 20 and he gave someone enough money to cover the million from Part Two, talking about how everyone can break even if nobody tries to gain. Part Three saw the six of us that went through, plus Sylvie, plus some girl, Wilma Schilling, to even out the teams. Wilma had everyone in her back pocket, but this is how I got here; Sylvie and I used our money to cover what everyone else owed. We had to keep Wilma in the game or the money would leave the system and you know what that would mean. Dana, Sylvie, myself, Wilma and Chris advanced to this game. So that's the story of how I got here." One minute left. "So, how did you get here?"

"I too forced a draw in Part One. When Part Two was upon me, none of the 16 of us had any sort of strategy. Once the game started, there were secret deals here and there, but nothing like nine people working together. When it was all said and done, I was on Red, seven were on Blue and the other eight were on Green. I had won. But I felt so guilty. I couldn't live with myself having ruined 15 people. So I asked CT to give a million dollars to everyone who played this game with me and lost. With my conscience cleared, I went through to Part Three. Part Three was where I met Takayoshi. Again, there were only the teams established and there was no real strategy to the game. In the end, our team won and I took on the debts of the three players who failed to qualify for Part Four." There were 20 seconds left.

"You sure remind me of Dana, trying to cover the debts of as many people as possible. But I'm in this for myself, we don't have enough money for everyone to win." There was silence for the last 10 seconds.

**Round 2**

The blindfold and earmuffs were put into their places. I couldn't see or hear anything for the next two minutes. When my senses were restored, I saw three identical stacks, one on each box. Naoki had nothing in front of him.

The blindfold and earmuffs came off. "You may wager on no more than one of the boxes. You may open one of the two non-winning boxes at the cost of one quarter of Mr. Kamisaki's total wager of ninety chips, in this case, twenty-two and a half chips. This figure will be rounded up to twenty-three. Fractional figures will always be rounded up in this game. You must wager at least 90 chips on no more than one box." It's always beneficial to open one of the boxes. Plus, Naoki is all-in. If I spend 23 chips, bet 90, and win, I'll get 135. The score will be 232-45. But If I lose, the score will be 97-180. It's all or nothing on this round.

"Open one of the boxes. I will pay 23 chips." Only Naoki displayed any sign of shock or surprise.

"We will open Box #3." It is empty, I'm down to either Boxes 1 or 2. I read Naoki's thoughts carefully. Almost as if I'm barging into his very soul. Barely any time passes, and I have my answer.

"90 chips, Box 1." There was a pause, and then the two remaining boxes were opened. My eyes light up.

"Box #1 is the winning box. Both players wagered on this box. Miss Black wagered 90 chips and Mr. Kamisaki wagered 30. Miss Black spent 23 chips to open one of the boxes before making her wager. These chips will be removed from the game. There are 60 chips wagered on losing boxes. Since Miss Black wagered three times as many chips on the winning number, as Mr. Kamisaki did, 75 percent of the losing chips will be awarded to her with the remaining 25 percent awarded to Mr. Kamisaki. The score stands at 232-45 to Miss Black. You will now have three minutes to talk amongst yourselves. Once both of you are ready, Round 3 will begin with Miss Black to deal."

"Let's get on with the game." I press the ready button. By this point, Naoki knew that there was no reasoning with me. So he gave up on convincing me to keep the money in the game. It is my turn to deal anyway, there's nothing I can do to take money out of the game as dealer, so he had nothing to worry about for now.

**Round 3**

The blindfold and earmuffs were put into their places on Naoki's head, leaving me to make my wagers. I have 232 chips to play with, 2.32 million dollars. I think about going all-in. I would bet 77 chips on each of the boxes with one left over. An extra chip on any of the boxes could alert him, so I should keep the bets equal to each other. I count out 77 chips and put them on Box #1, then I do this for Boxes #2 and #3. I pick Box 3 as the winning box.

The blindfold and earmuffs came off. "You may wager on no more than one of the boxes. You may open one of the two non-winning boxes at the cost of one quarter of Miss Black's total wager of two hundred thirty-one chips, in this case, one hundred seventy-three and a quarter chips. This figure will be rounded up to one hundred seventy-four. Since this cannot be afforded, you must wager all of your chips on a single box." Naoki thinks about the chips on the table. He must pick blindly among three boxes. I almost forget which box I picked to win.

"Well, there's no point in wasting time over a game of chance. 45 chips on Box 1!"

There was a pause, and then the three boxes were opened. Box 2, empty; Box 1, empty; Box 3, WINNER!.

"Box #3 is the winning box. Miss Black was the only one who wagered on this box. There are 199 chips wagered on losing boxes. These chips will be awarded to Miss Black, who now has 277 chips." Naoki put his elbows on the table and his head into his hands while the croupier continued. "Mr. Kamisaki has run out of chips. This game has ended. The final chip counts are as follows, Grace Black: 277 chips, Naoki Kamisaki: 0 chips. We will take a fifteen minute break and then we will play the final game in this set." We were both escorted back to the office where we had awaited this game. There were Sylvie and Carlton waiting for us.

13:43

"Glad to see you all gathered here. The Blue Game has finished. We will now reveal the standings entering the third and final game." The standings were revealed.

1st Grace Black $2,770,000

2nd Sylvie Montaigne $1,500,000

3rd Takayoshi Carlton $1,250,000

4th Naoki Kamisaki $0

The others were dumbstruck by the current results. None of them could say a word about anything. Only Sylvie failed to show any sign of distress, but she's never surprised about anything.

"In the fifteen minute break that we are giving you, please read the rules of our Free For All game, the last of three games to be played here." The Croupier handed each of us a pamphlet containing the rules for the third and final game.

**Segment 3: Conquest**

($1.5 million awarded to each player at start, $2 million to be returned at end)

-ALL PARTNERSHIPS ARE DISSOLVED

-Each player is given 15 divisions of soldiers, 5 knight divisions (worth 3 points each), 5 recruited divisions (worth 2 each) and 5 peasant divisions (worth 1 each).

-The game lasts 60 minutes. The amount of time left in the game will be displayed at all times. After 30 minutes, a counter will start at 15 (the number of divisions controlled by each player at the game's start) and will decrement every two minutes. If at any time, a player has more undeployed divisions than the number indicated by the counter, all of that player's undeployed divisions will be removed from the game.

-A move consists of playing a division either offensively or defensively. The first two divisions that a player deploys must be deployed defensively.

-If a division is played...

+Defensively, then it is prone to attack by other players' divisions. For a defending division to successfully be attacked, the sum of the value of the attacking divisions must be greater than the value of the defending division.

+Offensively, then it is not prone to attack by other players' divisions but the sum of the value of the divisions attacking the attacking division's target must be greater than the value of the defending division.

-A chart showing the defending division at the top row and all divisions attacking it directly below on the bottom row.

-The owner of a defending division has the right to capture an enemy attacking division if doing so would still leave a successful attack. This captured division can be played later, but will maintain its initial allegiance.

-At the end of the game, all surviving divisions will score their value for their original owner. Surviving divisions have either attacked successfully, or defended successfully. Each point is worth $50,000 for a maximum score of $1.5 million.

-If a player has no divisions which have successfully defended, then the player will receive no money for this game.

-The two players who have won the most money through both of their segments will advance to Part 5.

**Author's Note:** This game and its rules are almost completely identical to the game Icehouse by Andrew Looney and John Cooper. The US Patent for this game expired in July 1998. There are only a few changes for the purposes of making strategy a larger part of the game.

I almost lose focus while reading. Because no matter what happens, however badly I lose, I'll still be in the top two and move through to Part Five.


	37. One Step Closer

_Sylvie Montaigne_

_13:46_

"We will give you 20 minutes to read this pamphlet, after which you will be escorted to the venue of the Red and Blue games for our final, Free For All game. You may talk however you please, even in transit to the venue." I scribble on the margins of the pamphlet.

[notes]

Black: 2.77 mil, owes 3.925 mil

Myself: 1.5 mil, owe 2.8125 mil

Kamisaki: 0 owes 1.6 mil

Carlton: 1.25 mil, owes 285k

Team of everyone except Black: 15 knight divisions, 15 recruit divisions, 15 peasant divisions all on defense.

Black: 5 of each, she already has a ticket to part 5 and wants to hold on to her money.

Winnings: 1.5+1.25+4.5=7.25mil

Debt: 1.6+.285+4=5.885mil

Surplus: 7250-5885= 1365k=1.365m

I'll owe:

+2.8125 from Part 3

-1.365 won from Part 4

+2 owed to CT afterward

3.4475mil

$3,447,500

[end notes]

I circle the final sum of my debts to this casino they call the Confidence Trick. $3,447,500. Next, I pitch my idea to Kamisaki and Carlton. I explain every detail of our plan.

"If Grace uses her divisions to attack, we'll lose money, but she won't." Carlton has his doubts.

I relieve his doubt with simple math. "We have a surplus of 1,365,000 dollars, divide that by 50,000, round up and you get 28. Grace over there has 30 points with which to attack. Assuming that she only attacks our knights, she would need four points for that attack to succeed. 7 times 4 is 28. 7 times 3 is 21. And she has to play her first two divsions defensively. These calculations assume otherwise. Even so, the most that she can take off of our hands is just over a million dollars. Your debts will be cleared and I will be one step closer to finding whoever happens to be behind this."

Both of them accept my offer. all that remains is to wait for the game to begin.

_14:06_

"We will now move to the venue of our previous two segments for a practice session for our final segment. Please come with me." We followed the official to the setting of our last two games. There were four booths where the table was.

"Please enter the booth marked with your name." I entered the booth that bore my name in large letters. _Sylvie Montaigne_. I find a screen with an interface. One table showed the numbers of each tier of division held by each of us. Another table showed what I expect to be a list of all active attacks.

"For this practice session, each of you will be given nine divisions rather than fifteen. You will have 40 minutes for this game. In the actual game, you will have the fifteen divisions promised by the rules and 60 minutes to play. Once all players are ready to begin, or 10 minutes pass, the game will start." A green button with the word "Ready" appears. I touch the button and a phrase appears.

"The game will start in 09:55 or when 3 more players are ready. Press the button again to declare yourself 'not ready'." Under the sentence is a red button where the green button was. "Not Ready" I watch as more players declare themselves ready. _2 more, 1 more, ..._

_All players are ready, game will begin in 10 seconds._

Ten seconds pass. Once those ten seconds are up, I immediately put up all of my divisions on defense and complete my part in this game. Touch a division, touch defense, repeat nine times. Kamisaki and Carlton follow suit, leaving only Grace to play her divisions. A delay of about one minute, and then, deciding not to waste any money, she puts all of her divisions on defense. The words "Game Over" appear with the final standings for this game.

1st Sylvie Montaigne 18 points  
>1st Naoki Kamisaki 18 points<br>1st Takayoshi Carlton 18 points  
>1st Grace Black 18 points<p>

Under the results table, I see the phrase "The actual game will begin in 15:00 or when all four players are ready. Touch your name to declare yourself ready. If you decide that you are not ready, touch your name again and you will no longer be declared ready."

I touch my name on the results table. The row turns green. Soon the other three turn green and the game is decided. Everyone plays their divisions defensively. The game ends less than one minute after it starts.

**[Results]**

1st Takayoshi Carlton 30 points  
>1st Sylvie Montaigne 30 points<br>1st Grace Black 30 points  
>1st Naoki Kamisaki 30 points<p>

Please exit your booths to view the final results.

We exit our booths to see a television and several individuals in suits gathered around us.

"Please turn your attention to this screen for the final results of this game." A table showing the results is displayed.

Takayoshi Carlton: 1,250,000 + 1,500,000 = 2,750,000  
>Grace Black: 2,770,000 + 1,500,000 = 4,270,000<br>Sylvie Montaigne: 1,500,000 + 1,500,000 = 3,000,000  
>Naoki Kamisaki: 0 + 1,500,000 = 1,500,000<p>

"Miss Black and Ms. Montaigne will advance to Part 5. All players, please proceed to the checkout desk to claim your winnings or settle your debts." The four of us see a table just outside of the cafeteria and assume that to be the checkout desk. Unless I missed something, between Carlton, Kamisaki and myself, we have 7.25 million dollars. Kamisaki and Carlton owe, including this game, owe 3.6 million and 2.285 million respectively, for a total of 5.885 million. This leaves me owing 2.8125 million from before, plus 2 million from this game, minus the 1.365 million surplus. After this game, I owe 3.4475 million. As for Grace, she owed 3.925 million dollars entering this game. The 2.27 million she won here now leaves her owing 1.655 million. I almost consider giving what remains of the 7 plus million that was won between myself, Kamisaki and Carlton, but I decide against it.

"Okay, the debts owed by Mr. Kamisaki and Mr. Carlton have been paid. Miss Black, you now owe $1,655,000. Miss Montaigne, you now owe $3,447,500. Before you leave, here is the location of Part Five of the Confidence Trick." The man at the checkout desk gives myself and Grace a message.

**Confidence Trick Part Five**

_Part Five of the Confidence Trick will take place on March 12 at 15:15. On that day, we will expect you to be prepared to leave your home at 11:30 for a flight from Baltimore, Maryland to Galveston, Texas. _


	38. The Market

_**Sylvie Montaigne**_

_**14:15, February 26**_

"Thanks for everything." Kamisaki said to me as we prepared to return to our respective homes. He and Carlton will leave the system owing nothing to the CT. As for Grace, she still owes $1.655 million and will progress to Part Five with me. I'm one step closer to finding the one behind it all. With nothing left to do here, the CT escorts me from the building and I wait outside until a taxi pulls up. The driver is the same driver who drove me to the venue today. I open the passenger door and take a seat.

"So, how did it go?" he asks me as the car starts and begins to head home.

"Perfect. Black and I are going to Part Five and Kamisaki and Carlton no longer matter to you."

"Normally I would expect a brutal fight for those spots in Part Five, players trying to drag one another down, band together if they can't, and so on. I didn't expect to be able to predict the result of the game so easily. But somehow, you were able to decide the game before it even started."

"When you eliminate all doubt from the scene, you can do anything. Getting Kamisaki and Carlton to leave themselves out in the open was easy because there was no reason for them to do anything else."

"I forgot to introduce myself earlier, name's Dante Princeton." Not that his name would matter to me anyways. We continue our small talk for about an hour until I see my house. The car stops in front of it.

"Here we are, Miss Montaigne. Good luck in Part Five."

"Thanks for the ride." I leave the car and he drives off, leaving me to the rest of today. I check the time. _15:32. _It's still afternoon and I have two whole weeks before Part Five of the Confidence Trick.

**Two Weeks Later**

**10:56, March 12**

Black has a man on the 4-point and a man on the 3-point, White has three men on the 5-point and the dice. White rolls a double-3 and moves all three of his men to the 2-point, then bears one off to finish the turn.

With two men on the 2-point, White can win with anything other than a 2-1 roll, a 17 in 18 chance of winning provided Black doesn't bear off both of her men. Black can win with a double-2 or better or with two dice both showing at least 3. Five doubles and six non-doubles, 17 in 36 chances for a win for Black. Black rolls.. 6-2, not enough, the man on the 4-point leaves the board and the man on the 3-point moves to the 1-point.

Black now has one pip against white's four. But the odds are 17 to 1 in favor of a White victory. White prepares for her final roll. 2-1, against all odds, with almost 95% chance to win, White rolls 2-1 and can only bear off one man. One pip short, Black takes the dice and rolls, she might as well borne off the last man without a roll.

I put the board away and check the time, _10:58, _I look over the message from CT.

**Confidence Trick Part Five**

_Part Five of the Confidence Trick will take place on March 12 at 15:15. On that day, we will expect you to be prepared to leave your home at 11:30 for a flight from Baltimore, Maryland to Galveston, Texas. Please note that bringing any sort of paper with you to the venue is forbidden. Any paper or writing utensils will be confiscated._

I did everything I needed to this morning. There are still 30 minutes left before I need to leave, perhaps there's enough time for another game of Backgammon. I take the board back out to start the game.

This game wasn't as close as the last. White managed to keep Black on the bar long enough to bring all of her men home and bear them off. By the time a point opened up for Black, White only had seven men left on the board. Black would need an impossible series of jokers to bear off fifteen in the time it takes White to bear off seven. When Black finally got all fifteen men onto her home board, White had borne off four more men and cleared the 4, 5, and 6-points. It was now impossible for Black to win. The rolls continued and Black unsurprisingly managed to avoid a gammon. I put the board away as I hear a knock on the door. It's them again.

"Sylvie Montaigne?"

"I'm ready." The same taxi from Part Four is in front of my house, with the same driver as last time, Princeton.

"Hello again, Ms. Montaigne." Princeton greeted me and escorted me into the car. Not long after I took my seat in the car and the car began to move, he spoke. "So you've dug yourself into a bigger hole. Three and a half million is a lot of money, more than most people will ever make over their whole lives, and you owe us that much. How do you propose to pay it back?"

"I don't."

"What was that?" The car swerved slightly as Princeton lost focus on the road. "If you're not gonna pay us back, what's the point of you playing these games?"

"If a thousand people each lost a million dollars to this scheme, it would be easy to get a million dollars from one person. But if one person lost a billion dollars, apparently resulting in the same amount of debt, how many people can come up with a billion dollars? With a national median household income of 50-k, you could make a million in 20 years, but a billion, forget it."

"That's suicide!"

"Not for someone who's already dead. I have no family, no friends, I'm even in a car driven by someone who helped ruin my life. But it'll all be worth it, by the time the Confidence Trick is done, it will become a complete failure."

"Oh my... what the fuck?... Why did I come back?" Princeton just couldn't keep the conversation going. He could lose it all again by the time it's all said and done. All he could do was keep his eyes on the road and follow the directions to get to wherever we were headed.

**12:04, March 12**

We reach the airport.

"We've reached the stop, now get out of the car, just get out of here, plane's to your right. Holy crap, what is she planning to do?" I leave the car and see the plane ready for me. It's almost no bigger than a helicopter. I board and the pilot introduces herself.

"Park Su-min, welcome aboard Ms. Montaigne."

There are enough seats for a small group, any particular reason why there would be only one passenger? I ask this question to the pilot.

"I'll tell you once we're in the air. Now, please fasten your seatbelt." This gives me a feeling that there's going to be another game on this plane. But that fails to make any sense. There's no opponent here. But there's no doubt that CT knows what they're doing. All I can do is buckle up and wait for takeoff. The plane gathers speed and eventually leaves the tarmac. We climb to a relatively low height, too high to hit anything on the ground but not above the clouds.

"Aircraft has reached 10,000 feet, you are now free to move about the cabin. Now I'll tell you why there's no one else here. The point of this is that you will play a game."

"A game, huh. Against who? You?"

"This game will start in the air and finish on the ground. You'll face the ups and downs of _The Market_!"

"Huh, The Market." I say to myself, just before she explains the rules.

- There are 10 gold bars, 10 silver bars and 10 barrels of oil waiting for us on the ground. (Of course, they're not real)

- Players can make a bid stating how many units of a resource they want and the unit price at which they want the resource

+ The bidder with the highest unit price for a resource receives the amount of that resource she bid on, the bidder with the second highest unit price receives the amount of the resource that she bid on, if there are not enough units of a resource to accommodate the bid, the bidder gets nothing.

+ Once all ten units of a resource have been allocated, the bidders pay the lowest winning unit price for each unit of the resource they won. Take this example:

The pilot gives me a card listing an example of the bidding and results

Player A buys 3 barrels of oil at $150,000 each  
>Player B buys 5 barrels at $135,000 each<br>Player C buys 1 barrel at $350,000  
>Player D buys 4 barrels at $215,000 each<br>Player E buys 2 barrels at $90,000 each

Player C (Bidding $350,000 each) would receive 1 barrel (9 barrels left)  
>Player D (Bidding $215,000 each) would receive 4 barrels (5 barrels left)<br>Player A (Bidding $150,000 each) would receive 3 barrels (2 barrels left)  
>Player B (Bidding $135,000 each) would receive nothing (bid for 5, only 2 left)<br>Player E (Bidding $90,000 each) would receive 2 barrels and pay $180,000 (0 barrels left)

_So each barrel would go for 90k, the lowest winning unit price._

- Each player has an ID card/bracelet that will identify the wearer. This ensures that only the person identified by this bracelet can make bids or sales on their own behalf. Identity theft is futile (don't you try it)

- Other than this initial sale, the game will be divided into four quarters

- If there are any units of a resource unclaimed in the initial sale, they will be put back up for auction in the first quarter

- Each quarter is divided into two parts, 30 minutes to decide what to sell and 15 minutes to place bids.

- Resource counts and money totals will be publicly displayed on scoreboards across our destination, a building in Galveston, Texas

- Players with one unit of all three resources plus one additional unit of any resource will advance to the quarterfinal

_So, we're getting to the end of it all._

An alarm sounds. "Looks like it's 12:30. That means it's time to make your opening move. You'll find a touchscreen in the back. You'll have 30 minutes to place your bids. And remember, you're competing against nine others for these ten units. It takes four units to go to the quarterfinal."

**Author's Note:** This is my first chapter uploaded as a high school graduate (also, I turned 18 today). With school out of the way for the summer, I'll have a lot more time to write this and other stories. There won't be any more two-month gaps between chapters. I'll try to upload as often as I can, expect about 1-3 weeks between chapters this summer. I thank you, the readers for your patience over the last 10 months.


	39. Landing

**12:30 March 12**

**Sylvie Montaigne**

"You have 30 minutes, Ms. Montaigne. Here is your identification bracelet. Let me put that on for you." Park takes the bracelet and locks it onto my right wrist. Now I am officially playing this game. There is a computer in the back to input my opening move. I walk toward that computer. Next to the computer is some sort of red panel, presumably for someone's hand.

"Please place identification bracelet onto panel. Please note that there will not be a practice round for this Part of the Confidence Trick. Also note that each of you will start with one million dollars. Details on how money will be distributed will be given at your destination, an undisclosed venue at Galveston, Texas, But it is definitely a zero-sum game, we do not profit directly from hosting this game." I place my right hand on the panel. It turns green. A screen comes up. Gold, Silver and Oil. There are three rows below the names of the resources. Unit Price, Number of Units and Total Value of Bid.

I go over the rules for the auction. The highest unit prices will win and the lowest winning unit price will be the unit price paid by all winners. But I have to keep in mind that one of each resource and another of anything is needed to progress. After some debate, I decide on my bid.

3 gold bars at $150,000 each, 2 silver bars at $175,000 each and 1 barrel of oil at $200,000.

Total value of bid: $1,000,000

I type the appropriate values and touch "Enter Bid". Another window pops up. "Are you sure this is how you want to bid." My bid is repeated below this phrase. "3 gold bars at $150,000 each, 2 silver bars at $175,000 each and 1 barrel of oil at $200,000. Total value of bid: $1,000,000" I accept this bid. Now there is nothing for me to do except wait until we land.

**13:10**

**Galveston, Texas**

I check the time as I sit in one of several seats on this craft. _13:10_. It seems that we are about to land.

"Attention passengers, we are about to land. Please fasten your seatbelts." I click the belt into place and wait for the craft to descend. The plane's landing gear rolls on the tarmac and we land without incident.

"The plane has landed. Passengers, we have reached our destination. Welcome to Galveston! You are only a three minute drive to the venue of Part Five of the Confidence Trick!"

I leave the plane and see a man standing with a sign with my name on it. As I approach him, he sees the bracelet on my wrist that identifies me as a player in this twisted game.

"Hello Madam. You must be Sylvie Montaigne. The name's Park Jun, I'm the pilot's brother. Allow me to check for any writing materials before I drive you to the venue of today's game." He takes the driver seat while I take a second row seat.

"Come on, there's no one else to share this car with, you've got plenty of room in the front." I ignore him, responding with "Let's just get there so I can win."

"Ooh! Confident, aren't we! That's what I expect to see from someone who has made if as far as you have, Miss Montaigne." He didn't expect me to respond, judging from the fact that I chose to sit in the second row rather than next to someone involved in this scheme, coupled with the fact that I told him I was here to win. The ride was uneventful as a result, those three minutes were like any three minutes in my life.

**13:16**

"Well, here we are."

"Thank you." is all I say to him before I open the door.

"Tip, please. Oops, my bad, how rude of me to ask for a tip from someone who still owes 3.5 million dollars."

I shrug off whatever joke he was trying to make with that comment and step out onto the front of the building. _Here we go again._ Surprisingly, there is no one else here. Either I'm early, I'm late or they want us to enter one at a time. I enter the building, knowing that there is a reason for the lack of other players outside with me. The first things I see are nine people crowded around some sort of screen, some table, that shows the winning bids and the highest losing bids. I see Dana, Black, and Schilling looking at the table with a few others.

"Sylvie Montaigne, please turn your attention to the results screen."

**Winning Bids (all bids are in thousands of dollars)**

**Gold**

Alena Yazova, 1 at 300  
>Kousuke Miles-Itou, 4 at 250<br>Wilma Schilling, 4 at 250

Price: $250,000

Karsten Lawrence, 2 at 200

**Silver**

Alena Yazova, 1 at 300  
>Clive Battle, 2 at 250<br>John Janvier, 3 at 225  
>Karsten Lawrence, 2 at 200<br>Sylvie Montaigne, 2 at 175

Price: $175,000

Grace Black, 2 at 166

**Oil**

Alena Yazova, 1 at 300  
>Clive Battle, 2 at 250<br>Karsten Lawrence, 1 at 200  
>Sylvie Montaigne, 1 at 200<br>Grace Black, 2 at 166

Tied:

Ashley Baelz, 2 at 150  
>Dana Andrews, 2 at 150<p>

Price: $150,000

John Janvier, 3 at 108

There seems to be a tie for three of the barrels of oil. I have no time to ponder this situation before we hear a voice.

"Now that everyone is here, we shall explain how to win money from this game. We will also cover special situations that may arise in this game. So please listen to this explanation."

- The money spent in the opening auction will be put into a jackpot. Since 9 gold bars sold for $250,000 each; 10 silver bars sold for $175,000 each; and 9 barrels of oil will sell for $150,000 each, the jackpot is calculated to be $5.35 million dollars.

- At the end of this first auction, there will still be a gold bar and a barrel of oil left on the table, the lowest winning price in the next auction for these items will be added to the jackpot

- Since there is a rare tie at $150,000 between Miss Baelz and Mr. Andrews and we do not wish to settle it based on luck, the other players will vote on the issue after this explanation.

- The jackpot will be split equally among all winning players, the fewer the number of players who beat this game, the more each person gets. For example, if five players win, each of them gets $1.07 million, if four players win, each of them will get $1.3375 million

- If there are enough bids for multiple units of a resource, then not all units up for auction may sell. The bank will buy these unsold units with money from the jackpot and sell them at the next auction if there is one.

- We loaned out a million dollars to each player before the game started. This million will be returned at the end of this game.

"That's all there is to it. Now let's vote on who gets the oil. Will it be Ashley Baelz or will it be Dana Andrews? There are eight of you here, so it will take five votes to decide who wins these two barrels of oil. There is a group of ten booths to my left which would normally be used to place bids and sales, but when the situation calls for it, they will be used to vote whenever a tie occurs in the bidding. So let's vote. Please enter a booth and cast your vote. This is to be settled with no discussion, so you have 30 seconds to enter a booth or your vote will be nullified." The ten booths are arranged in a semicircle. Of course, the booths have curtains to protect the identity of the bidder. With the exception of Ashley and Dana, we walk to the semicircle and each enter a booth. A panel and touchscreen computer identical to those from the plane are the only things in this booth. I place my right hand on the panel and the computer identifies me as Sylvie Montaigne.

_Please cast your vote:_

- Ashley Baelz  
>- Dana Andrews<p>

I vote for Dana to win the two barrels and exit the booth to join Dana and Ashley. The others join us one at a time. Black comes out first, followed by a few others. The last person to leave is Schilling.

"Did you vote for me?" Dana asks. I reassure him. "Yes."

"We will announce the results of the vote." There was no discussion on how any of us would vote. Most of us were complete strangers, so I had no idea how the vote would go.

_Ashley Baelz: 5 votes  
><em>_Dana Andrews: 3 votes_

"Miss Baelz will receive 2 barrels of oil for $300,000. Congratulations." Ashley was happy with her win. Dana looked like he somewhat expected the loss, but he was happy.

"With that, we will begin the First Quarter. You have 30 minutes to decide what you want to sell."


	40. The First Quarter

"With that, we will begin the First Quarter. You have 30 minutes to decide what you want to sell." With half an hour to think about our strategy, now we had some time to discuss strategy. My goals: progress to the next Part of the Confidence Trick, keep Dana and maybe Grace in the game with me, take on as much debt as possible, and of course, beat Schilling at this game. I see Dana and try to talk to him. With everyone talking and making deals about sales, no one would think anything of two people talking to each other.

"I just sold a bar of gold! If you want it, the auction begins in 28 minutes! Come and get it!" Schilling exits a booth as she announces what she put up for sale. _So, she's putting them up one at a time. The lower the supply, the higher the price. _Someone else exits a booth. must be the guy who went broke buying 4 bars of gold. He lets out a sigh of relief.

Dana actually approaches me first. I start the conversation. "So, didn't get anything, huh."

"Ashley is a great friend of mine. I met her in my section of Part Four. I played against her in the second segment."

"So how did that go?"

"It was hard to convince her and Kayla, the fourth player in our group, to work with us. We didn't get to talk with our opponent until the game started. All I knew of Kayla was her name until the Conquest segment. I told them about my experiences with these games and how everyone could at least break even if no one tried to win for themselves. They agreed and everyone scored 30 out of 30. The four of us had enough money to pay off our debts to CT and Chris and Kayla even trusted me and Ashley with the surplus."

"How much?"

"Just above $600,000, the two of us split it. I wanted to use my half to pay off your debts, but that would just get in your way."

"Eh, give it to Grace she owes over one and a half million."

"I'll give her the money when we check out."

Dana knows that he made it his duty to pay off as many people as possible. I have no doubt that most of the people here is here to win enough money to pay off their debts. But if he tries and fails to progress, he will lose the million he borrowed for this game. Everyone who wins here will receive a share of what was spent here.

"So, what's your goal for this game, Dana?"

"Not everyone will be able to progress, 30 divided by 4 equals 7 with 2 left. That means at least three of us will be eliminated. Wait, there might be a reason why Wilma put only one of her gold bars up for auction. The less of something there is, the more it costs. Gold cost a quarter million in the opening auction. As the game goes on, the prices of all three items will rise, and she'll make more than the million she bought the gold for."

"Not sure if there's anything I can do about that, But everything will work out in the end. That much I can promise." Dana's head tilted down when he heard that. He knew what I meant. If something went wrong, I would be the one to make it right. However this game goes, it will turn out to be a complete failure. I realize that Dana hasn't answered my question.

"So, do you plan on ending it here, or do you plan on going through?"

"Of course I'm going for a spot in the next game. My goal is to get as many of the others out of here and into safety as possible." How I wish he hadn't said that. "Maybe we could work together, bid close to each other. For example, 150-k and 149-k, we could be able to control the prices of items."

"You have a point, If we both win, the item can't go for anything more than $149,000. This only fails if neither of us win. I bet everyone is trying to drive those prices down. I have two silver bars and a barrel of oil. I can sell one bar of silver, and we know the rest."

"You should do that right now. Don't see why not."

"I see no risk either." I walk to a booth and use the bracelet on my right hand to authenticate myself. A screen shows that I have 2 silver bars and 1 oil barrel. I enter my sale, 1 silver bar and 0 oil barrels. I touch the sell button and confirm that this is what I indeed intend to sell,

**13:50 **

**End of 1st Sale**

"The first of four sales has finished. We will reveal how many of each resource will be up for auction in the Second Auction." We all faced a large screen that would tell us what would be on sale in this quarter.

**Gold (5)**

3 from Kousuke Miles-Itou, 1 from Wilma Schilling, 1 unsold in the Opening Auction

**Silver (5)**

2 from John Janvier, 1 from Karsten Lawrence, 1 from Sylvie Montaigne, 1 from Clive Battle.

**Oil (4)**

1 from Ashley Baelz, 1 from Grace Black, 1 from Clive Battle, 1 unsold in the Opening Auction

"The auction will start in 20 seconds, you will have 15 minutes to place your bids. Any players who are selling will receive the appropriate money after the balance is deducted from the buyers' accounts. Therefore, you must wait until the next quarter to spend the money you will receive in this quarter."

It will be very difficult to coordinate your actions unless you have somewhere around five or six people who will absolutely cooperate. Schilling no doubt still has eight million dollars to burn dating back to as early as Part One. She almost certainly has enough to pay off everyone here, myself included.

What's this? She pulled out a checkbook. It has to be seven figures.

"Clive, there are only two smart people in this world. Me and you. Did I misspell your name?"

"No, Miss Schilling."

"Please, 'Wilma' will do." So, they're working together. If their goal is to get Battle to the Quarterfinal, then Battle needs a gold bar and something else. Battle only has $350,000 to spend. That's why he sold a barrel of oil and a bar of silver. The only way to prevent this would be to bid higher, but I'm just one person, I can't count on being enough to knock him out of winning two gold bars in the third quarter. I'll just have to let this one pass by me. The only thing for me to do is to bid. I see that Dana has left his booth, having input his bid. I ask what he bid.

He whispers his bid to me. A quarter million each on one bar of gold, one bar of silver and two barrels of oil. I only need a bar of gold and one other unit to progress. If Dana doesn't win everything he bid for and there happens to be a tie at $250,000, it will go to a vote, not that it would matter as we would only be at halftime, so there is no risk in bidding 250k and matching Dana's bid. I explain this to him and he understands that I will match his bid. I enter a booth and verify that I am me, then I input my bid. 2 gold bars at $250,000 each.

Is this how you want to bid?

2 gold bars at $250,000 each  
>Total value of bid: $500,000<p>

This is how I want to bid. If this doesn't win, I'll still have the money plus whatever I get from selling that bar of silver and I can try again. The human instinct to survive, be it their lives of financial security at stake is strong enough to make you betray any strategy you may have. You need to get to safety as fast as possible, there is no reason not to bid. But you can't spread yourself too thin.

One by one, everyone inputs their bids, but there are a few holdouts. Of course, with no money, Miles and Schilling can't bid. But Battle and Janvier also fail to bid. I did see a friendly exchange between Battle and Schilling, perhaps that explains Battle's failure to bid. Janvier also did the smart thing and amassed money before bidding. He will have a much deserved advantage in the Second Quarter. Once time runs out, we are called back to the scoreboard, the "Big Board", as I call it.

"Please pay attention to the results screen." The ten of us all watch the results of the First Auction appear on the screen next to the Big Board.

**Winning Bids (all bids are in thousands of dollars)**

**Gold**

Ashley Baelz, 1 at 300  
>Grace Black, 2 at 300<br>Tied:  
>Karsten Lawrence, 2 at 250<br>Sylvie Montaigne, 2 at 250  
>Dana Andrews, 1 at 250<br>Price: $250,000

**Silver**

Ashley Baelz, 1 at 300  
>Dana Andrews, 1 at 250<br>Price: $250,000

**Oil**

Alena Yazova, 1 at 270  
>Dana Andrews, 2 at 250<br>Price: $250,000

"All resources sold for $250,000 per unit, anyone who sold resources will be compensated the appropriate amount of money whether or not all units of that resource sold. There is a tie for the two remaining bars of gold. The other players will vote on this dispute. There is to be no discussion as to how anyone will vote. Since we have no way of enforcing that, you will have 30 seconds to enter a booth and authenticate yourselves or your vote will be discarded. It is impossible for more than one player to win their bid. Will it be Karsten Lawrence, Sylvie Montaigne or Dana Andrews?" I watch as the other seven players walk to those booths. I am left with only Lawrence and Dana and the three of us watch as the other seven decide which one of us will progress to the Quarterfinal.


	41. The Second Sale

**Sylvie Montaigne**

"I wonder who will win this vote."

"So do I." Dana responds. We know that whoever wins this vote will have just enough to progress to the quarterfinal. It's a choice of the lesser of three evils for these seven. All I know is that Schilling wants to beat us down. She will definitely vote for Lawrence to win. I know that Dana has Baelz's vote. But for everyone else's votes, there's no bias toward anyone, no way to predict who will win. One by one, they empty out of their booths.

"We will announce the results of the vote." Even though there was no discussion on how anyone would vote, this time around, we had time to get to know each other. Sadly, almost everyone is in it for themselves, most of them probably voted randomly.

_Karsten Lawrence: 5 votes_

_Dana Andrews: 2 votes_

_Sylvie Montaigne: 0 votes_

"Mr. Lawrence will receive 2 bars of goldl for $500,000. Congratulations." I knew that Schilling would vote for Lawrence and that Baelz would vote for Dana. But four of the other five votes went to Lawrence. Could Karsten Lawrence have taken the time to get to know the others better than anyone else did? This is either a lucky man or a formidable opponent I'm seeing. Anyway, he has a place in the quarterfinal and so does Yazova. Neither of them will sell anything for the rest of the game.

"With that, we will begin the First Quarter. You have 30 minutes to decide what you want to sell."

The game had not even reached halftime. But we were already close to the end game. The current game situation went as follows:

There were 7 Gold, 8 Silver and 7 Oil not used by 'safe' players, players who have met the objective of this game.

-Miles-Itou has 1 gold bar and $750,000  
>-Baelz has 1 of each and $450,000, she could win with the next Auction<br>-Lawrence is safe, he will walk away with $250,000 and a share of the jackpot  
>-Dana is one Gold short, but has $250,000<br>-Yazova is safe with $175,000 and a share of the jackpot  
>-Schilling is not trying to win, she's hoarding 3 gold bars and can easily profit from the ensuing inflation<br>-Janvier would be in a good position unless he has debts to pay, he has 1 silver bar with $975,000. He can easily make a profit, but the profit he makes will need to outweigh his debt. I can see him bidding in the next auction  
>-Black is one silver bar short with $450,000. With 3 silver bars unsold from the last auction, she has a wide road to victory.<br>-Battle has a silver bar and an oil barrel, with $850,000, he has a sure way to get the two units he needs to win.

**Dana Andrews**

"Dana, you've been with me since Part Four. If you don't make it through this game, I want to use my share of the jackpot to pay off your debts." Ashley reassured me that we had nothing to lose.

"Don't worry, I just need one bar of gold to win." Then it occurred to me. Schilling was only going to put up one bar each quarter. With everyone else desperately holding on to their gold, Schilling would put up all of the gold that would be available this quarter.

"Oh no, I think I get it now." I finally say.

"Get what?"

"Schilling will only put one bar up for this auction and everyone else will hold on to their gold. That means that there will be only one gold bar for the highest bidder. Looking at that table over there, assuming that everyone is trying to get to the quarters, nobody else will sell and the game is stuck. There will be 3 silver bars and an oil barrel, but we can't rely on any of those being sold back. If I sell back my silver and oil, I could make enough to break even on this game, thus keeping the 300-k surplus I brought with me. That surplus means that I can exit the CT safely even if I only make as little as 450-k from sales. But, I have two friends here."

"I know, you can't bring yourself to leave Sylvie and Grace behind. Not while they still owe millions."

"I know that Sylvie is actually trying to accrue as much debt as possible so she can bring down whoever happens to be behind this whole thing. But what about Grace? She still owes one and a half million. What am I going to do? If she doesn't win here, she won't have a chance to repay that one and a half million." I quickly change my tone and reasure myself how easy it is for Grace to win that bar of silver that she needs. She has $450,000 to spend and there will be at least three bars of silver on auction guaranteed. Looking at the game situation, Kousuke, Ashley, Sylvie, John and Clive all need a silver bar to win. But Ashley is the only other person who is one silver bar from winning, so the two shouldn't face many issues getting the needed silver. Meanwhile, I can safely give up on winning. Many of these players have astronomical debts to pay, It's better for four people to suffer instead of five, two rather than three. This Confidence Trick can work with one less person.

"This Confidence Trick can work with one less person. If you make it and I don't, I want to take your place in the quarterfinal."

"That's crazy, Dana!"

"I know it's crazy, but if it happens to be what I need to do for someone to safely exit the CT, then that's what I'll do. I have some stuff to sell now." As I turn toward the booth, I feel a warm embrace that nobody would expect in something like the Confidence Trick.

"Thank you, ... you don't know what this means for someone like me, I don't know what will happen if I lose in the quarters, but thanks to you, I don't have to know that. I'll win, but you'll risk your life as you knew it in the next game."

"It's just what I do here."

**Sylvie Montaigne**

Most of the people here have debts to pay. I know for a fact that this does not apply to Schilling, Dana or Baelz. This leaves at most six debtors to the CT. I look at the table again and see that Miles-Itou has only one unit. I easily find him pacing back and forth.

"Are you Kousuke Miles-Itou?"

"Yeah."

"I want to ask you a question."

"Okay."

"How much do you owe to the CT?"

"Why are you asking?"

"I might be able to cover it."

"How can I trust you? What can you do to make me trust you?"

"I owe almost 3.5 million dollars."

"There's no way you can cover that, why are you worried about me then?"

"I don't plan on covering that debt."

"What? That's crazy. Why are you even here then?"

"You have some gold that I need to go through to the quarters. I was wondering if I could offer you a deal. This deal will clear your debt."

"How can I trust you?"

Dana enters the coversation with almost storybook timing. "Because I played against her. No, wrong word. I played _with _her. During Part Three, it boiled down to Wilma Schilling against everyone else."

"Wilma Schilling, isn't she here too?"

"Yes apparently, but the important thing is that even though Schilling won big in Part Three, the players who advanced with her paid off the debts of the players who were eliminated."

Miles-Itou responded. "Maybe we could do that here. But first we need to know how much everyone owes."

"Which is why I asked you that question near the start of our conversation. So, how much do you owe?" I chime in.

"$600,000."

This was a start for us, after Dana, Kousuke, Grace, Ashley and I conversed with Karsten, then Alena, then John and finally Clive, we found these figures: Kousuke owed 600 thousand, Grace owed 1.655 million, Karsten owed 755 thousand and John owed 1.165 million. Between these four, they owed 4.175 million. Ashley and Dana each came in with a surplus of 303,750 dollars, but that was all the surplus we had. Alena and Clive wouldn't respond to our deal, only saying that they owed nothing and that they weren't interested in our offer. This meant that we needed to cover 3,567,500. The break-even point for the seven of us was seven million dollars, our scores from this game totaled 3.875 million.

The best we can hope for would be to clear the debts of the players going home today. If four of us go home today, we would need a total score of four million plus any debts those four might have while the rest of us play in the quarterfinal. We have 3.875 million, so up to three of us can exit safely. But Karsten does have a share of the jackpot, now standing at 4.85 million. But there's the chance that Clive Battle could win a share, leaving us with 1/3 of that 4.85 million, about 1.6 million dollars. If we want more, some of us would have to win a share of the jackpot. Grace and Ashley have easy paths to that jackpot, giving us no less than three of five shares, 60%, almost 3 million. This would give us about seven million, meaning that any three of the four debtors could leave safely. Assuming that we choose Grace, Karsten and John to exit, that would cost us 3 million plus their total debt of 3.575 million, 6.575 million. We would need four places in the quarters, Ashley, Grace and Karsten have already qualified. But, Dana already sold his silver and oil, maybe Kousuke could use it and win a fourth place in the quarters, though that could prove difficult. All we would need to do was to decide who would progress, but that would have to wait as we ran out of time.

**14:35 **

**End of 2nd Sale**

"The second of four sales has finished. We will reveal how many of each resource will be up for auction in the Third Auction."

**Gold (1)**

1 from Wilma Schilling

**Silver (4)**

1 from Dana Andrews, 3 unsold in the Second Auction

**Oil (3)**

2 from Dana Andrews, 1 unsold in the Second Auction

"The auction will start in 20 seconds, you will have 15 minutes to place your bids. Any players who are selling will receive the appropriate money after the balance is deducted from the buyers' accounts. Therefore, you must wait until the next quarter to spend the money you will receive in this quarter."

"Can I clarify a rule?" I ask.

"Why sure, Ms. Montaigne."

"What will happen if nobody bids on a resource?"

"Then all sales are withdrawn and any units of that resource put on the most recent sale will be returned."

"Thank you."

"The auction starts in ten seconds. The rules are the same as before."


	42. End of Part Five

**14:36**

**Dana Andrews**

"What will happen if nobody bids on a resource?" Sylvie asked.

"Then all sales are withdrawn and any units of that resource put on the most recent sale will be returned."

"Thank you."

"The auction starts in ten seconds. The rules are the same as before." She probably doesn't want anyone to buy Gold. That would give money to Schilling. Schilling has won almost ten million dollars up to this point. If she were to leave right now, it would spell disaster. But even if none of us buy any gold, Battle could just bid and give Schilling some money. No matter what, Schilling was going to profit on the gold she amassed. Going to the quarterfinal was outside her concerns. I needed to find a way to keep her or her money in play.

"The auction has started."

**Sylvie Montaigne**

"You know what happens if we don't buy your gold, Schilling. It'll just stay in your hands and lose its value. You can also forget about Battle just buying all of your gold. He has no reason to buy more than two. You have three last time I checked. It won't do you any good to just hold on to it. Why not go for a share of the jackpot?"

"If things go as they are, then Clive will get a share of the jackpot, now standing at $4.85 million. Let's assume that the end total of the jackpot will be five million. Assuming that nobody does anything else, Clive will get one third of the jackpot, $1,333,333.33. If I succeed at a share of my own, that would give us two shares. In total, we would win half of the jackpot or $2,500,000.00, a difference of $1,166,666.67. Of course, with the auction going on behind us, it is likely that one or two of the people you're working with win a share of the prize. According to my estimate, a second share would give a raise of $750,000.00 if one other wins here, or $666,666.67 if two others win here. Am I willing to spend that much just to get it back with next to no profit? So I decided to make things easier for myself. I'm not going to push for a few thousand dollars."

"I think it's time for me to bid now. I want that gold."

"Good luck with that, you may take that one, but I have two more, there's no way you can take all three." She chuckles a bit while I head for a booth.

...

Is this how you want to bid?

1 gold bar at $749,000  
>1 oil barrel at $1,000<p>

Total value of bid: $750,000

I confirm this bid. Assuming that Battle does outbid me, he will need about 15% of the jackpot. If there are at least six winners at the end of the game, this will result in a net loss for Schilling and Battle if Battle decides not to outbid me. After this, I contemplate strategies for the next sale. Several combinations go through my head for the next fifteen minutes...

**14:51**

"Please pay attention to the results screen." The ten of us all watch the results of the First Auction appear on the screen next to the Big Board.

**Winning Bids (all bids are in thousands of dollars)**

**Gold**

Sylvie Montaigne, 1 at 749  
>Price: $749,000<p>

**Silver**

Ashley Baelz, 1 at 450  
>Grace Black, 1 at 450<br>Kousuke Miles-Itou, 2 at 350  
>Price: $350,000<p>

**Oil**

Kousuke Miles Itou, 1 at 50  
>Clive Battle, 1 at 10<br>Sylvie Montaigne, 1 at 1  
>Price: $1,000<p>

"The totals on the board have been updated. We have reached halftime. Since we do not wish to stop the game, we will instead add fifteen minutes to the next sale. The third quarter has started, the sale in this quarter will end in _45_ minutes."

"Hmm... Sylvie, why did you bid 749 thousand on gold?" Dana asks.

"Yeah, aren't you just giving money away to Schilling?" Ashley chimes in.

"I was aware of that, but I doubted that Battle would put all of his money into buying that one bar of gold. With nothing to sell, and 0 dollars, it would be next to impossible to get the fourth unit he needs to advance to the quarterfinal. The jackpot stands at 5.901 million dollars and six of the ten players have already won. Ignoring Yazova's share, we have $4,917,500, almost five million. Adding in our cash on hand that the seven of us have, 2.076 million dollars, this gives us a total of $6,993,500, only $6,500 short of the 7 million break even point."

"Only $6,500 short, and we still have the $607,500 surplus from Part Four."

The seven of us have debts totaling $4.175 million, cash on hand totaling $607,500, an additional debt of $6,500 from this game, this means that between the seven of us, we will owe $3.574 million at the end of this game. Of course, this doesn't count my debts, I couldn't care less. Everyone except Dana and John has won a place in the quarterfinal, giving us five places. Only two of us need to exit now, But it is very likely that the five who progress will take on more debt.

"Hey, Sylvie, I have an idea." John whispers something into my ear. Something about selling his bar of silver. He wants to sell his last bar of silver. This will take money out of the jackpot and into our pockets. A great idea. I bet that either Battle or Schilling will sell all they have so they can get a share of that huge jackpot. But this will only work if silver is in demand. Meaning that Battle must sell to Schilling.

**Dana Andrews**

Either Battle or Schilling will sell all of their items to the other. If Battle sells, then Schilling has 999 thousand to buy three units. If Schilling sells, then Battle has 849 thousand to buy one unit. There seems to be no way to enforce any agreement made between any two parties. But we seven were able to unite under one flag. The only way for us to win was to work together. At first, I had trouble finding a way for even two people to collude in this game. But once the opening moves were made, some combinations were whittled down, allowing me to further examine the ones that remained. If we intercept a purchase from Schilling to Battle, we would need 850 thousand dollars.

And then I find something out. "If Schilling sells both of her gold bars in this quarter, she will get double the unit price. Half of the money would come from the buyer and the other half from the jackpot. That could mean 849 thousand dollars taken out and we'll have a 5/7 instead of a 5/6 share. Our share will drop from 4,917,500 dollars to 3,608,571 dollars, a loss of over $1.2 million. And we can't block the sale unless two of us bid at least 850 thousand. Only John has that kind of money at the moment. So now, in this game, we have a total of just under 5.7 million. We'll take one and a half million more in debt. And there's nothing we can do about it."

"I might be able to solve some of that problem." Sylvie re-entered the conversation. "Let's go over what would happen if I sell a bar of gold alongside Schilling's two bars. We will get 849 thousand from the jackpot, Schilling will get her 1.698 million (half from Battle and half from the jackpot) and the jackpot will stand at 4.203 million."

"But we lose part of the jackpot, we'll only have four shares out of six." Kousuke remarks.

"So let's add it up. We get $849,000 in exchange for one share of the jackpot, leaving us with two thirds of 4.203 million or 2.802 million. That adds to 3.651 million."

"That doesn't even get fifty thousand back. By losing a place in the quarterfinal, the group of us that moves on will have to take another million in debt."

"If we bid low for that second bar of gold, then we'll drop the final price of gold."

"Which is why she will only put up one bar for sale." Once we realised that ther was no way out of this one, we sat there, wondering to ourselves what we should do.

**Sylvie Montaigne**

The game has essentially ended. It was determined too dangerous to forfeit a place in the Quarterfinals. Two of us would leave safely.

"I need some time to think. Nobody is planning on bidding, are they?" Instead of bidding or selling, I take this time to think about the money in the game.

$2.076 million on hand  
>$3.608571 million, 57 of the Jackpot, which will be reduced from $5.901 million to $5.052 million  
>-$4.175 million, total debts excluding mine<br>+$0.6075 million, Dana and Ashley's surplus

Subtotal: $2,117,071  
>Breakeven point for seven people: $7,000,000<p>

After counting this all up, I conclude that indeed any two of us can exit safely. I return to the group and make my proposal.

"Any combination of two people can exit if we pool all of our money from this game into clearing their debts We have five spots in the quarterfinal. Two of us can leave safely after this game. So my question is this: Is there anyone who wants to move on to the quarterfinal?" Dana, Grace and Ashley stand up to take spots in the quarterfinal. I raise my hand to take my spot with them in the quarters. This meant that between Kousuke, Karsten and John, two of them would leave and the other would advance to the quarterfinal. None of them showed any interest in the quarterfinal.

"This game is like the others. We can forfeit by paying half of our winnings from this game. So we can have five spots, but we don't have to use all of them." John proposed.

"If someone won a place but lost money overall, they could exit for free, but their existing debts would not be covered. The ones who remain would have to take on the debt of the extra leaving player. I'm afraid that isn't an option we can afford. The more people who move on, the less debt that each of us will have. So, is there anyone who wants to move on?"

John made a proposal. "Since none of us is gonna volunteer, I think it should go to a game of Rock Paper Scissors. Itou, Lawrence, is that something you can agree to?"

"I see no other way."

"Neither do I." The three of them stood up.

"The loser will go on to the quarterfinal and the winners get to go home. Is that understood?"

"Yes, it is."

"Okay."

"Then I'll say 'one, two, shoot' and we throw. Got it?"

"Okay."

"Okay."

Their game of Rock Paper Scissors was underway.

"One, Two, Shoot!"

Kousuke threw Paper, as did Karsten. John, however, threw Rock and lost.

"Well, that's that." John reacted.

**Dana Andrews**

If Schilling sells her gold to Battle, she'll be able to exit and take over nine million dollars with her. There's nothing I can do about it. Schilling is greedy but, she's not that greedy. There's nothing to do except wait for time to run out.

**15:36**

**End of Third Sale**

"The third of four sales has finished. We will reveal how many of each resource will be up for auction in the Fourth Auction."

**Gold (1)**

1 from Wilma Schilling

**Silver (0)**

**Oil (0)**

It was all over. Battle would take the gold with $849,000. When the fourth sale ended and nothing went on sale, the final auction was cancelled and the game ended.

"Since there is nothing for sale, we will cancel the final auction and end the game. Congratulations to all players advancing to the Quarterfinal of the Confidence Trick!"

**Advancing Players (7)**

Kousuke Miles-Itou  
>Ashley Baelz<br>Karsten Lawrence  
>Alena Yazova<br>Sylvie Montaigne  
>Grace Black<br>Clive Battle

**Eliminated Players (3)**

Dana Andrews  
>Wilma Schilling<br>John Janvier

"Players, please head to the checkout desk to collect winnings and settle debts."


	43. The Return Flight

**16:21**

**Dana Andrews**

"Congratulations to the seven of you who have collected the required resources. The Jackpot stands at $5,901,000! This sum must be divided seven ways. Each person who won here today will receive $843,000! Before you go to check out, please note. If you won a place in the Quarterfinal but lost money overall, after adding any share of the jackpot, you may forfeit your place in the quarterfinal for free. This applies to Mr. Miles-Itou, Ms. Baelz, Ms. Montaigne, Miss Black and Mr. Battle. You may forfeit your place in the Quarterfinal for free. Alternatively, you may transfer that place to any eliminated player provided that they take your place. Once again, congratulations to our winners!"

**16:23**

**Checkout for Part Five**

Ashley and I used the $607,500 we carried from Part Four to pay off some of the debts that Kousuke held. Kousuke now owed $100,500. Sylvie insisted that she cover the the balance with her own money from this game and that she cover Karsten's debt wth what remained. This move left her with $80,500 from today's game, meaning that she took debts totaling $919,500 from this game, even though she was the mastermind who won us five spots in the quarterfinal. Thus Kousuke and Karsten exited the Confidence Trick, giving their places to me and John.

Ashley ended the game with a score of $943,000, she still owed $57,000. Meanwhile, I had a score of $602,000.

"Ashley, this Confidence Trick can do without one more person, you lost fifty-seven thousand dollars."

"Don't do it, Dana, just don't. I know what you're talking about." I could hear her voice crack. _Why do knights in shining armor have to make these sacrifices? _

"Listen, you won a place but lost money. You can leave for free. I have more than enough to cover for you."

"Dana, please."

"Take the money and get out of here! I'm begging you, Ashley! It'll mean one less person in danger!"

Finally, she surrendered. "Okay." She turned to the checkout desk.

"I would like to use $57,000 to pay the debt of Ashley Baelz. This money comes from the money I had at the end of the game, I know that I will delay my repayment of the million from this game."

"It will be done. You have $545,000 from this game and you owe $1,000,000."

Ashley came up to the desk. "I would like to forfeit my place in Part Five."

"Since you lost money in this game, you may exit for free. Are you sure you want to exit the Confidence Trick?"

"Yes, I am."

"Very well then, I'll just strike your name through."

My thoughts turned to Schilling, She came in with almost 10 million dollars. She won that money from someone else in the Confidence Trick. If she just leaves after this game, then that 10 million will leave the system. It isn't a coincidence that she enters the scene while my thoughts are centered on her.

"Well done, Ms. Montaigne. You freed three more people. But now you face a problem. Between Andrews, Janvier and Black, they owe 3.357 million dollars. Meanwhile, Clive and I split our winnings. Between us, we made a profit of 691,000 dollars, split that two ways and we each took 345,500. This gives me a total profit of 10,120,500 dollars. If I leave now, then that money will leave the system. But I want an overwhelming victory against Sylvie. That's what I really want out of this whole thing. The money takes a back seat. To narrow the competition, I will replace one of you. I will clear that person's debt and you can trade spots so that that person has a spot that they can forfeit for free."

**Sylvie Montaigne**

"So, you're offering one of these three a way out of the Confidence Trick, all expenses paid."

"That's right, Ms. Montaigne."

"What do you guys say to that?"

Dana, John and Grace huddle up to discuss the offer. After a few seconds, they come to a decision. Dana speaks.

"Ashley Baelz forfeited her place in the quarterfinal. Perhaps you could take her place, she did not pay to forfeit, so you can just take her place. Am I right?"

The man at the desk confirms that anyone can take the place of Ashley Baelz. "You are right, Mr. Andrews."

"If that's what it takes to beat your friend Sylvie here, then I accept your terms. I will take the place of Ashley Baelz in the quarterfinal."

"Very well then, once you leave, a personal jet will transport you to the airport closest to your home. A chauffeur will wait for you to land and drive you to your home. I wish you good luck in the Quarterfinal of the Confidence Trick."

"One last thing. I still have $80,500 from this game, I have no intention of paying back the money I borrowed for this game so I will give that $80,500 to Grace Black. Is this okay with you, Grace?"

"Yeah, it is, whatever gets you closer to your goal of meeting whoever's behind this. I can't stop you."

"Well, Sylvie, until we meet again." Schilling leaves the building for her flight home. Dana, Grace and John stay with me for a few minutes, just to talk.

"Welcome back, Dana." Grace said.

"Good to be back. Good to be back with my back against a wall. And..."

"Wait just a second, Dana." Ashley intervened. "You just let Schilling take my place? And John gets to keep his place?"

"Nope."John entered the conversation and walked to the desk. "I want to give my place to Ashley Baelz. Is this possible?"

"Miss Baelz has been removed from the Confidence Trick and her debts have been paid. The rules dictate that an outsider may take the place of a full participant in the Confidence Trick. This means that Miss Baelz can indeed take your place, Mr. Janvier. Of course, as long as she is willing to take on the debt of the player she replaces..."

"And I am. I will take the place of John Janvier."

"Ashley, what are you doing?" Dana asked.

My response: "She wants to stand by us, when we decided who would advance to the Quarterfinal, she stepped forward like you, Grace and I did."

"I want to be here. As much as you want me to be safe, Dana, you can't keep me out of this one. I'll stand by you. Now it's settled. All four of us will advance to the Quarterfinal, end of story."

"Okay, I can accept that. Good luck everyone."

The man at the checkout desk struck through John's name and re-added Ashley's name to the list. Schilling, Battle, Dana, Ashley, Sylvie and Grace would play in the quarterfinal. As for Yazova, her fate was unknown, but were she to leave, she would only remove $268,000 from the system. We left for our respective flights home. But we just had to take a few last glances at each other before we boarded our planes.

**16:32**

**Skies over Galveston, Texas**

"So, what did you think of the game?"

"I enjoyed every minute of it."

"How could you enjoy the game when it cost you another million?"

"This game brought me one step closer to the end. One step closer to the end of the Confidence Trick."

"Well, yeah, that's the goal, to get to the end and win. But most people won't win the final. So the next best thing would be to strike it rich while you can. Schilling seemed to have that point. She won over 10 million dollars up to this point. You've lost about four and a half million. What's the point of taking on the debts of everyone you see?"

"My goal in this Confidence Trick is to take on as much debt as possible."

"Wow. So, what do you expect to gain from that? There aren't that many games to play."

"How much does the average person make in their life?"

"About 3 million dollars. You owe four and a half. Do you think we'll care if you die of old age and still owe us one and a half million? People forfeit and pay us for that right to forfeit. It would be next to impossible not to get that 1.5 million back. Your plan won't work, Sylvie."

"It may not work, but that may not matter. I only want to know the people behind this. Naturally, I don't want anyone else to suffer from my victories, so I offer to pay their debts, because... let's say I have nothing else to live for."

"There's the sky, this plane, a house, the companionship of others in this Confidence Trick, you name it, there it is, another reason to live. You can do anything in this wide world. After you find my bosses, what will you do?"

"I'll make them pay."

"How? You'll have no money and nothing to bet."

"Don't you worry, I'll think of something."


	44. What Will It Profit a Man?

**17:55**

**Sylvie Montaigne**

**BWI Airport, Maryland**

"We have landed in Baltimore, Maryland. You will now be driven to your home. The driver will give you your invitation during the drive home. We hope you enjoyed the game, Ms. Montaigne." I leave the plane and the pilot. A car awaits me near the tarmac. As usual, Princeton will drive me home. I enter the car and the car leaves the airport, headed for my home.

"Well, Ms. Montaigne, one million dollars closer to your goal. But there aren't that many games left to play. How will you accrue tens of millions in debt with the final in sight?"

"Maybe, I don't need to. Maybe I'm here to disprove the whole point of the Confidence Trick. The whole point may be to prove something. I don't know what that is, but I know it has something to do with the players competing against each other for millions of dollars. I admit that my initial plan wouldn't cost you even a few million dollars, almost nothing to the people behind this. If I can't take their money, I can take their reason to hold any more of these games."

"How do you propose to do that?"

"I need to figure out their reason behind this. Why would they hold what amounts to a life and death game?"

"I have no idea. I only came back to get rich."

"Well, I have a feeling that I'll find out the reason behind the Confidence Trick by the time it's over."

**18:35**

I find myself outside my house.

"Here, your invitation to the Quarterfinal." Princeton gives me the familiar card that looks like it could only come from the people behind the Confidence Trick.

**Confidence Trick Quarterfinal**

_The Quarterfinal and Semifinal of the Confidence Trick will take place on April 2 at around 12:00. On March 30 at 20:00, we will arrive at your doorstep. _You will ride for 48 hours to Riverside, California and arrive at approximately 17:00 on April 1. Expect the Semifinal to finish at about 0:00 (midnight) on April 3, give or take a couple of hours.

"I'll see you in about three weeks. Until then, Ms. Montaigne."

**18:35**

**Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel**

**Dana Andrews**

"What are your plans for the Quarterfinal, Mr. Andrews?"

"I know that there might not be a way to clear the debts of everyone still in the Confidence Trick. But I know that if I do nothing, then everyone in the game will lose. If there aren't enough people willing to sacrifice their lives as they knew them, then everyone's lives as they knew them will end. For some people, that has already happened. What reason would there be to hold such games? I mean, other than profiting from human greed?"

"My theory is that these games are supposed to be divine punishment for the sin of greed. There seems to be no other logical reason for games like these to exist."

"A very good theory. But only the people who lose are punished. These games don't punish greed, they reward it."

"Matthew 16:26 For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what shall a man give in return for his soul?" the driver said. "When all you want is money, you don't really control your money, your money controls you. I believe that these games make you choose between money and power. If you win, you effectively give up your soul. If you lose, well... you lose. Either way, your life will never be the same as it was before."

"Okay, now it makes sense. And there's still the same reason for everyone to just break even. If nobody tries to profit, nobody will profit, but everyone can go back to their lives, right?"

"Yes, nobody will have gained or lost anything. But the odds of that happening decrease with every player added. Such trust can't be attained between strangers. In these games, if you betray someone and take their money, there won't be any consequences to face."

We keep up this small talk for the rest of the ride. All this time, I think about how hard it may be to get everyone on the same boat. I mean, during Part Three, Sylvie, Grace and I managed to convince four others to unite against Schilling. 7 to 1 is about as close as you can get to a unanimous decision. As long as there's someone who wants to get rich, 7 to 1, or any number to 1 will be as close as anyone can get to true unity.

**19:15**

After a flight and a car ride, I'm home.

"Here, your invitation to the Quarterfinal. All of your questions will be answered when you get there." The driver gives me an invitation to the Quarterfinal. But something on the card bothers me.

**Confidence Trick Quarterfinal**

_The Quarterfinal and Semifinal of the Confidence Trick will take place on April 2 at around 12:00. On March 30 at 19:30, we will arrive at your doorstep. _You will ride for about 48 hours to Riverside, California and arrive at approximately 17:00 on April 1. Expect the Semifinal to finish at about 0:00 (midnight) on April 3, give or take a couple of hours.

The Quarterfinal _and_ Semifinal are on the same day? Two games in a row, huh? This reminds me of the first two Parts, held on two straight days.

"I'll see you on the 30th, Mr. Andrews."

"Wait, I have to ask you something!"

"There's nothing you need to worry about." The driver rolls up the window and drives off, leaving me to ponder my situation. I now know that I'll have all the answers I need come the 30th. But that won't stop me from thinking about the next game. Somehow, these games slip my mind until that Friday night when I realise that I'll wake up Saturday morning and bet my life again. Why does no one expect to see me on those days? Could they also know about the Confidence Trick? But the 30th is a Wednesday, so I'll be out of here on a Wednesday evening and come back on when? A late Tuesday night? A Wednesday morning? I'll be gone for a week. How can I explain my absence without letting on about the Confidence Trick. Maybe they already know about it. Maybe they already know that I've given my consent and my word that I'll be there. They may know about it, but no court could ever bring down the Confidence Trick. The players all gave their consent, so it's nothing in which the law can really be involved. How did they get the money to finance this? How am I able to keep the Confidence Trick off my mind until the night before?!

For the rest of the day, I think about how this whole sequence of events could have occurred without any outsider interference.


	45. No Luck

**March 30**

**18:44**

**Sylvie Montaigne**

It's finally time again to play whatever game the Confidence Trick throws at me. The Quarterfinal looms over the horizon and I have just over an hour before I leave. But I have my preparations out of the way. So I sit down for a game of sevens.

I deal four hands of 13 cards. After the deal, all of the sevens are laid face up. The first player has only one move to play, the 6 of spades. This is followed up with a 5 of spades by the next player, who also has the 4 of the same suit. The third player has three kings and an ace, not a very strong hand. He plays his 6 of clubs

The fourth player has a godsend, all of the 8s, two of the 9s and a 6. He plays his 8 of clubs and keeps control of the high clubs. Back to the first player, we'll call him Daniel. He has the 5, 3, and 2 of clubs. He plans on playing the 5, the 4 will almost certainly come out before his next turn, and he can play the 3 and 2. The second player, we'll call him Jim, plays his 4 of spades. Then the third, we'll call him John, passes his turn. The fourth player, let's call him Will, plays his 8 of hearts, maintaining his dominance with six out of the 8 cards that can be played.

The 4 of clubs didn't come out as Daniel had planned, but that didn't matter as the 4 of spades let him play his 3 and then his 2. Jim had no choice but to play his 6 of diamonds, allowing John to play his 5 of diamonds. Will plays an 8 of spades, knowing that he will get rid of his 10 and Queen.

Daniel plays a 2 of spades as planned. Jim follows up with a 9 of spades, giving control of the suit right back to Will and forcing John to pass. The 10 of spades comes out.

4 of diamonds, Jack of spades, 3 of diamonds, Queen of spades. Daniel passes for the first time. Jim plays the last high spade, the King of spades. John then has to pass for a third and last time. Will closes off the low spades wih an Ace, offering no help to Daniel, who uses his second pass. Jim has the 2 and Ace of diamonds, he plays the 2 and will play the Ace on his next turn.

John has no play and no passes left, he is out of the game. and his hand is laid out for all to see.

Will's dominance continues as he holds five of the six cards that can be played, but he still has that Ace of hearts. Deciding that he needed to play it, he plays his 6 of hearts. Daniel still has no play, and so uses his third pass.

Jim plays a 5 of hearts. John held the 4 of that suit, so that is also played. Will chucks his 8 of diamonds, waiting for the 9 and 10 to come out. Daniel is left with no move and is out of the game, leaving two players. Jim closes the low diamonds and Will closes the high clubs with his 9 and the 10 through King from the two defeated players.

Jim uses his 9 of diamonds and Will closes the low clubs. Jim then plays his 3 of hearts, followed by the discarded 2. Will responds with the Ace of that suit. Jim realises that he can pass, force the 9 of hearts out of his last opponent, play his queen, force a pass, and play his 10 of diamonds to win. So he passes, however, Will passes in response. This repeats until both players pass three times. Jim must now play a card, allowing Will to play the next card in sequence and force a fourth pass, winning outright and scoring a complete victory.

Sometimes (like this time), a player has such a commanding hand that he can force the other players out of the game and win without a fight. Sometimes, seven of the eight ends will be closed and the player holding that 5, 6, 8 or 9 can dominate the game. I play many more hands of this game, simply because of the number of ways it can end. A commanding victory by one player or a four way race to the finish. The possibilities are endless!

As the clock changes to 20:00, there is a knock on my door, as expected.

"Sylvie Montaigne, it's time." I'm ready to leave for Riverside. It will be a long, two-day ride to the next venue.

**April 1**

**17:00**

I finally arrived at Riverside, California. The game was set to start tomorrow, so they drove me to a nearby hotel to get some rest. Tomorrow at noon, the game will start.

"Your room, madam." An usher showed me to my room for tonight. "We will call you at 11:00 tomorrow, as you know, the game will begin at noon. You are not to leave this room until then. To enforce this, we will lock you inside. Worry not, everything you need to continue life, aside from contact with the outside of course, is all here."

**April 2**

**07:15**

**A hotel in Riverside, California**

**Dana Andrews**

I wake up to a Saturday morning. Today, the Quarterfinal of the Confidence Trick will take place. There are still about four hours until the doors unlock and I am escorted to the venue. I take this time to think about the astronomical debt that we have. Of the four of us that chose to move on to this point, I owe $455,000, Sylvie owes almost $4.5 million, Grace owes about $1.6 million and Ashley owes almost $1.2 million. Add that up and we owe about 7.7 million dollars. I have to hope that we can clear that debt today. I am restless for the morning. All I can focus on is that door. I know for a fact that the door will unlock at 11:00, but that does nothing to stop me from staring at that door.

After almost four hours and what must have been almost a thousand glances at that door, I hear the sound of something unlocking. The door finally opens and suited men and women appear.

"Mr. Andrews, are you ready to leave?"

"Yes, I am. I've been waiting all morning for this."

"Keep this on you until the game starts" An usher gives me a nametag. It says "Dana Andrews" on the top line and "Quarterfinalist" on the bottom line. The ushers escort me from my room to a garage to a van. We then take a short drive to what appears to be an abandoned mall. There are a few other vans such as the one which I am in on the parking lot. This must be where we'll play the next game. An usher gestures for me to exit the vehicle. I do so and then am escorted inside the building. There are dozens of others in the building. I assume that these people are other players.

"Hey! Dana! Over here!" I look around for the source of those voices. No doubt they sounds like Grace and Ashley. As the voice becomes louder, I know that I'm getting closer to them. Eventually, I am able to see them through the crowd of people.

"Nice to see you both again after three weeks! By the way, have you seen Sylvie?"

"No, haven't seen her yet, but she'll be here." More and more people enter the building. "Let's go somewhere where we can see the entrance. That way, we'll see her when she enters."

"Great idea, Dana." We try to distance ourselves from the crowd as much as we can. It doesn't take long for us to separate from the crowd. Just in time for Sylvie to make her entrance.

"Here we are once again."

"Sylvie!"

"Nice to see the three of you again." The reunion is short lived as a man appears near a railing one floor above us and his voice blasts the room.

"_May I have your attention please?!" _The crowd falls silent. _"Thank you. And congratulations to our 110 quarterfinalists for making it this far! Give yourselves a round of applause!" _Unexpectedly, or not, there is no applause. Nevertheless, he continues. _"Welcome to the Quarterfinal of the Confidence Trick! We are almost at the end folks. By the end of the day, 10 of you will earn places in our Grand Finale! Without further delay, we will divide you into eleven groups of ten players. Please form a single file line in front of the check-in desk. You will draw a number out of a bag. Once you draw a number, you will be escorted to the room with that number. This number will tell what group you are in. Now may the first Quarterfinalist come up and draw a number?"_

"Shit. That means that the four of us are gonna be split up." I reacted to the near certainty that we would all have to go it alone.

"Oh my God..." is all that Ashley can say. Grace and Sylvie however, were confident in their abilities. They were sure that they could play any game the Confidence Trick had to offer.

We waited for our turn to draw our numbers. One by one, the Quarterfinalists each drew a number. Eventually, everyone had drawn a number except the four of us. All we could hope for is that there were at least two of any number left. Grace draws her number first.

"6." Grace said. Next, it was Sylvie's turn to draw.

"11."

Now it was my turn to draw. I draw... 2. So far, Grace, Sylvie and I have been put into three different groups. Unless Ashley drew a 6, 11 or 2, we would each have to play alone.

"Come on... give me a 2..." Ashley muttered to herself, praying to match one of our numbers. She drew... 3. That meant that we would play in four different groups, with no one to help us. We were then escorted to our groups in this Quarterfinal.

**Author's Note: Please Read!**

On the 28th, I am moving to College Park. If there is anyone who is currently attending or will attend University of Maryland College Park this fall, PM me. Tell me what you think of my stories so far.

Also, watch out for a new story coming to this site soon, _Tribunal_. Thirteen gamblers who have made their livings through cheating are given one last chance to redeem themselves by gambling the way they were supposed to gamble in the first place. This new story will take concepts from _Liar Game _as well as _Judge_ by Yoshiki Tonogai.


	46. Bargain

**12:05**

**Riverside, California**

**Grace Black**

I was drawn into group 6. The four of us had been drawn into four different groups. When I finally arrived at a room with the number 6, I looked inside. There were nine others in the room. But I realised that one of those nine was Wilma Schilling. But I don't care who she is, I will win. Maybe it's time for us to forgive one another. I want money and so does she.

"Hello, Schilling."

"So you're back again, Black. And you don't have any friends to help you this time."

"Are you calling me weak?"

"Nope, just calling attention to the fact that you'll have to play this game by yourself."

"Well, don't speak too soon. We still need to find out what game we're going to play." Right on cue, a CT official enters the room. Behind him, ten carts enter the room. On each cart are four suitcases, a stack of gold and a nameplate. The carts are moved to a corner of the room and the official goes over the rules of this game.

"Let me welcome you all to the Quarterfinal of the Confidence Trick. The game you will play is called 'Bargain'. Of course, you can't tell a person's true nature by only their name, so I will explain the rules of this game. Please hold all questions until the end of my explanation."

- The ten gold bars on each cart are each valued at $100,000. Since there are ten carts and ten of you, each of you has been given $1 million

- The four suitcases on each cart are valued at $100,000, $200,000, $300,000 and $400,000, again totaling $1 million

- As a gift to our Quarterfinalists, even though we have loaned out $2 million to each of you, we will only ask for $1 million in return

- Now on to how to use the money given to you. You must trade the cases with each other to win. The cases have the name of the original owner printed inside them along with the value.

- Look around you, there are five trading tables, you can just call them tables. Here, you can make a deal with an opponent. The deal can involve cases and/or gold. Please note that the value of a case is a secret to everyone except the owner of the case. When cases are on the trading table, only the number of cases is considered in the deal. The cases can be of any value and any source, as long as the correct number of cases is given, there is no foul play.

- It goes without saying that you may trade only on your behalf and stealing is prohibited.

- All gold and cases must be displayed openly, that also goes without saying.

- Now let me explain how the game is scored. Cases held by the player to whom they were initially issued have no value. If you still have any of your own cases at the end of the game, they are worth nothing. Also, no more than one case can come from any player. If someone gives you two or three cases, the most valuable case counts and the others are worth nothing.

- You must return one case of each value at the end of the game, any missing values will be penalised with a fine of double the value of the missing cases. If you have two of a value, then they both count for your score. Speaking of score, let me explain how to calculate that.

- If after eliminating cases with no value, you have cases worth $100k, $200k, and $400k, you are missing a $300k case. That makes your score negative $600k. What if you had five cases worth $100k, $300k, $300k, $400k, and $400k? You would return one each of $100k, $300k, and $400k, face a $400k fine for missing a $200k case and have leftover cases totaling $700k. $700k-$200k=$500k, your score would be positive $500k.

- In short, cases count toward your score, but gold does not. Having 50 gold bars will not increase your score.

- As for how to get to the Semifinal, that's simple, simply have the highest score at the end of the game. High score wins a place in the Semifinal. Plus, you can transfer that place to anyone of your choice, that player must pay half of their profit from this game if he does not want to go to the Semifinal. Between the remaining eight players, volunteers will be taken. Up to three of the ten of you will advance to the Semifinal. If there are more volunteers than available spots, then the players with the highest scores will advance.

"Well, that explains the rules to this game. Any questions?" Schilling raised her hand.

"Is it possible to give away cases or gold?" What the fuck? Is there any reason to do that? And I thought she would be a challenge. I see no way she can profit from giving stuff away for free.

"Yes, but only if the prospective recipient accepts the gift." Schilling raised her hand again.

"Is it possible to place services, or promises on the bargaining table?"

"You are welcome to offer such things, but they are not officially part of any deal and cannot be enforced. Nor can any contract be enforced in this game. The only commitments that can be enforced are those made on the bargaining table regarding cases and gold." Those were all the questions that Schilling wanted to ask. I had a question of my own.

"What must happen for the game to end?"

"Oh yes, I forgot about that. The game will end after 6 hours. Alternatively, once 3 hours pass, Halftime will be called. After this point, any player can declare themselves finished with the game. This declaration can even be undone if the player later believes he can still increase his score. But once 9 of you declare yourselves finished, a 30 minute clock will start. Unless someone reenters the game before that clock runs out, the game will end. Are there any more questions?"

...

"None? Then is there anyone not ready to play?"

...

"Well then, we will start once everyone gets their cart." The ten of us each take the cart bearing our name. A clock lights up, showing "6:00:00" in red text, six hours. The text turns green and the clock starts counting down. The game has started, now it's time to try again with Schilling. I easily find Schilling next to her cart.

"Hello again, Miss Black. Come to trade with me?"

"As a matter of fact, I have."

"What a surprise, I didn't think you would be willing to deal with me, but I'm not surprised by this fact. We have worked together once before. I see no reason not to try it again. Let's go to a table to talk." We both push our carts to the nearest table and begin our negotiations.

"As you know, the idea is to get as many cases from as many different players as possible. Meaning that only one of my cases will count for your score and vice versa. I propose that we each trade all of our cases to one another. We'll each keep one and use the other three as leverage to trade with other players." This is actually a great idea! Mutually beneficial to both parties, I like it!.

"I guess it's a done deal."

"Wait! I'm not done yet! I want to offer you three gold bars." Well this is a surprise, Schilling wants to tip this deal in my favor?

"Why would you offer me three gold bars? You're not the kind of person who would push the balance of trade against yourself."

"I've won over 10 million dollars in the Confidence Trick. $300,000 is nothing to me. Use it well."

"Now, it's a deal. Thank you very much."

"It is a deal. Please complete the trade now." An official said. Schilling took three gold bars and all of her cases. I put all of my cases on the table. Now that the cases have officially changed hands, I can look inside these cases to see if she was lying to me. I look inside and all four bore the name Wilma Schilling. I will be honest and say that I half expected her to lie to me, but it wouldn't change the amount of leverage I would have after this trade.

Then I think about the possibility that everyone else has a debt to pay off. It wouldn't do anyone any good to lie about the cases they are trading if they happen to be trading the same number of cases on each side. I can imagine everyone having one of each case and the game ending with everyone winning a million. In any case, I just need to keep trading until I have cases from at least three others. This game still has a ways to go before it ends, but it should be easy to get those cases I need.


	47. I Want To Crush Her

**350 minutes remaining**

"To all players, I have an announcement! I have just traded all four of my cases to another player in exchange for all of her cases. I will sell each of the cases I have at this moment for either three bars of gold or one case. If your goal is to advance to the semifinal, then I suggest you take this offer." Everyone stopped when they heard this offer. If you trade for one of each case, you could just return them and cash in the gold for a million dollars. You most likely will not advance to the semis, but if you don't owe more than a million, you could use this strategy to clear your debt and pocket the balance. Now, you can make more than a million. But offering a price of 3 gold bars, that's clearly tilted in her favor, everyone will trade cases. It was a race to get to Schilling's table first.

"Hey! Hey! Get in line! No need to act like dogs!" The eight players aside from myself formed a line. I saw the name of the person at the front, Evan Baker

"Okay, just plop one of yours on the table and I'll do the same. The deal is done." Baker and Schilling traded cases.

"I just sold a $200,000 case. Next!" Why would she tell everyone what case she sold? Ha, a pretty easy question. She's not going to change the price of three gold bars. She still has her $100,000, $300,000 and $400,000 cases to give. But you are able to lie in this game about the cases you sell. Naturally, people questioned the validity of Schilling's claim to have sold a $200,000 case. Until Baker looked inside his case and saw "$200,000" written inside.

"People! It's okay! She can be trusted alright!" The doubt of the other players was dispelled. The next in line, Clancy Dunbar, came up to the table.

"Okay, here's my case. Now get me one of yours." Dunbar put a case of his own on the bargaining table. The deal was done. As Dunbar walked away, Schilling announced the value of the case she just sold.

"I have just sold a case containing $100,000! This leaves me with cases containing $300,000 and $400,000!" If this were true, then giving up a $100,000 case would net an increase in score to the tune of either $100,000 or $200,000 once you figured out how to trade your other cases case for case. Or if you wanted to get to the Semifinal, you could trade three gold bars for a case, in exchange for having only a 50% chance to make $100,000, but increase your score by the full value of the case. With five cases instead of four, you could trade cases more easily. You could give yourself a huge advantage in trades with just one extra case. The next person in line came up. His name was Dennis Lyndman.

Lyndman tosses three gold bars onto the table next to Schilling's case. Schilling takes the gold and leaves Lyndman to take the case.

"Alright, this is the last case up for trade. This case, I swear is worth $300,000. Because this is my last case, I will offer it up for either one other case, or _five _gold bars. But since you have a right to know why, I will explain the increase in price. Were I to be left with only two cases, I would have to rely on gold to buy cases that would be otherwise difficult to obtain. To even that out, this price jump will give me 15 gold bars with which to barter for any cases I may be missing. In the event that I have two cases worth $100,000, that gives me some trading power, but the rest of my power comes from the amount of gold I have. 15 gold bars would be plenty to get all four cases I need. So who will come up and trade?"

"Hey! I'm at the front of the line! That means I want to trade!" said the woman in front, named Makoto Saunders.

"My bad. What do you want in excange for this case?" Schilling said as she tossed the case onto the table.

"I will give you my case for your case." Saunders tossed a case onto the table.

"Okay, thank you for the offer." Schilling tossed the last of the cases she received from me. The trade was done. With Schilling closing up shop, I was ready to make my move. I had four cases in hand.

"If you couldn't get a deal over there, I have plenty of cases over here! Buy, sell, or trade. I'm always open for business! I have 10 gold bars and one case of each value! You are free to negotiate prices with me!" Making yourself an always available trade partner will draw everyone to you. Everyone will see you as a partner rather than look around aimlessly for one. When faced with two equal options, they can't choose one over the other, like a donkey who is every bit as thirsty as he is hungry. Since it can't choose, it will die of thirst or starvation. I however, will stand out so that everyone will come to me. Naturally, the four who couldn't get a deal with Schilling came up.

Chris Milton came up with an offer of one of his cases for one of mine. The deal was accepted and he even told me what case he would give up. We agreed to trade $300,000 cases. The deal went off without a hitch. Betraying someone's trust is the worst thing you can do outside of the endgame. This trade gives me a score of $700,000. I just need to make two more trades.

The next person in line came up. Her name was Alisha Wolstein. I said that I needed a $200,000 case and a $100,000 case to get an even score.

"Well, things could work out for you. I have a $100,000 case from Angela Sanchez and a $200,000 case from me. We have no reason to lie, because that would entail giving cases worth more than we claimed. This should give you an even score.. The deal was done. Even if she lies to me and gives me a case worth $300,000 instead of $200,000, that would give me a score of negative $100,000 but I'd have an extra $300,000 case. Extras are easily sellable and more reliable, because unless you have more than one of anything else, you would have to do the right thing and sell what you say you're going to sell. God, I'm becoming Dana. Well, at any rate, she can't safely lie about which cases she'll give me, so we traded two cases each. I got rid of the $100,000 and $200,000 cases I got from Schilling, as expected, I got cases worth $100,000 and $200,000. I still can't believe it was that easy. I had an even score and made a profit of $1.3 million dollars, but I still owed about $330,000. No doubt that there are going to be people with missing cases. they probably want to move on to the Semifinal. Wait a second.

"I think it's time we got to understand each other. One at a time, we'll tell everyone how much we owe and whether or not we want to go to the semifinal. Let's start with me."

"Why do you need to know how much we owe!?"

"Because I'm sure that most of us have been in debt to the CT since day one. If this is the case, then we have had no choice but to keep playing. I want to stop playing these games. Don't you?"

"Hey... yeah!"

"Then I guess I'll go first." I started. "I owe $1.6 million and want to go on to the semifinal."

"Wait, why do you want to go on to the semifinal?"

"I have made a profit of $1.3 million in this game, but I just don't think that I can get the $300,000 I need. We'll talk about that later. Plus, I actually want to make money from these games. It is not necessary that I profit at someone's expense in this game, like the others. My third reason is that... I have friends in other groups, they have debts too. I want to move on and play with them again."

"I'll go next." Evan raised his arm. "I owe $640,000 and I have no intention of moving on to the semifinal. I've been through a lot over the course of the Confidence Trick. I don't want to risk my life like this again."

And so it went around.

Dennis owed $110,000 and did not want to progress.  
>Chris owed $1.25 million and wanted to progress if he still owed money.<br>Richard owed $1.96 million and also wanted to progress if he still owed money.  
>Angela owed $455,000 and had no intention to progress to the semifinal.<br>Alisha owed $350,000 and had no intention to progress to the semifinal.  
>Makoto had no debt but could not pay the forfeit cost from the last game, explaining how she ended up here. She wanted out as well.<br>Clancy owed $965,000 and had no intention to progress to the semifinal.  
>Wilma had no debt but wanted to progress. This was unthinkable to everyone. She then explained why she wanted to progress to the semifinal.<p>

"I was swindled once. By someone else in this Confidence Trick. It all happened so fast. A woman came up to me and offered to invest my money into the construction of real estate. She promised a return of 250% of my initial investment."

"What was her name?"

"Her name was Jeanne l'Argent. I sold all of my assets and put it all, about 2 million dollars into her hands. A week later, I watched the news and the network said that l'Argent had been caught in a burning house. She had every penny that I had saved from the last five years as a stock trader. I had lost everything in the blink of an eye."

**Flashback**

**Wilma Schilling**

**2 days after the death of Jeanne l'Argent**

I received a note in the mail the size of a postcard.

_Dear Ms. Schilling, _

_I killed someone very important to you. On the 1st, you invested your money into the construction of real estate. Two days ago, Jeanne l'Argent was found dead in her home. I am more than happy to confess my role as her killer. Without any heirs to carry on her work, I was able to swoop in and steal her money. Don't bother trying to get it back, I already donated every penny I took from her to charity. Have fun!_

_ -Sylvie Montaigne_

I was outraged, I trusted her with everything and here comes someone to take it all away! This world runs on greed and avarice. People kill people for whatever coins or paper you have on you. I only had fate to blame for my tragedy. It just isn't fair for this to happen! I swore, I would give anything if she was brought to justice. I heard the doorbell. I walked to the door and saw someone outside.

"Hello! Ms. Schilling? I want to talk to you about Miss l'Argent's passing." I open the door, knowing that this is important. The woman continued. "I want to invite you to Miss l'Argent's funeral. She failed to write a will, believing that it was nowhere near her time. However, I have arranged a funeral for her. Here is an invitation to her funeral." She handed me a postcard with information on l'Argent's funeral.

_A funeral for Jeanne l'Argent will be held on July 24th at 13:00 at the Jackson Funeral Home._

**Jackson Funeral Home**

**July 24, 13:00**

"We are gathered here today to mourn the passing of Miss Jeanne l'Argent." It was a dark day, even though the skies were clear and blue. "To start, is there anyone who would like to speak about her life?" A woman stood up and walked to the podium. The man who just spoke stepped aside for her. The woman sighed.

"Oh, Jeanne, if you can hear this I just know you're not dead and that this is just a dream. I never got the chance to confess this to you. But I know you can hear this even though you're up there. How do I know?" The woman smiled. "Because I am Jeanne l'Argent." Everyone gasped at what sounded completely illogical. "Yes, you aren't hearing things! I am Jeanne l'Argent! Do you want to know the true story." Everyone was in shock at the revelation. They still could not believe what they just heard.

"Hey! Calm down and listen! Settle down! This is important!" Slowly, the crowd settled. "Now I will tell you what happened to Jeanne and all of your money. You see, the name Jeanne l'Argent wasn't my real name. I had burned down my house and called the fire department. I told them that there was one person inside and she was already dead. That person was thought to be l'Argent. I had kept your money in the house next door. The day after Jeanne's death, I donated the money you all gave me to charity. 25 million dollars out of your hands."

"You mean you made off with our money!?"

"Yes, and there isn't any way to get it back without stepping on a few toes. You'll have to ruin the lives of others to get it. Is there anyone who is willing to do that?" Police cars could be heard, they were here for Sylvie. Everyone had been swindled by this good for nothing bitch.

"Sylvie Montaigne, we've heard everything. You are under arrest for fraud."

**End Flashback**

"Sylvie was taken in. She didn't even resist arrest. A month later, she was found guilty of her crimes and sentenced to 30 months in prison. But even though justice had been served, the damage had been done. Then, the day after she was released, I received an invitation to a gambling tournament called the Confidence Trick. So here we are. This is why I want to move on to the semifinal, so I can crush her."


	48. Everyone's Okay

**320 minutes remaining**

"That's why I want to move on to the semifinal. I want Sylvie Montaigne as a slave to me and everyone else who lost their livelihoods to her." Schilling finished.

"Schilling, is this really true?"

"Yes, this is my whole reason for continuing in the Confidence Trick. Why would I be willing to put myself at risk?"

"Why did you steal five million dollars in the Intermission?" I asked.

"I needed the money to buy people's loyalty. But now we're getting close to the end, we have the semifinal and the final. I wanted as little blood on my hands as possible. It's no longer about winning cash. Between all of us, we owe 6.27 million dollars. There's ten million dollars to be won here. Once the game is over, I will pay off everyone's debts, guaranteed, but I will not give money so that someone can forfeit. But I just know that money will be a huge factor in the semifinal. There will be other people with debts, we can get them to our side by paying them off. Only three of us will advance, but the rest will be able to exit the Confidence Trick. Chris, Richard, do you still want to progress?"

Both of them shook their heads in denial. "Very well then." Schilling said. "That leaves only Grace and myself."

"Now, I regret ever working with Sylvie. She's the reason I'm in so much debt right now. I'll stand by you."

"So will I." Richard stepped forward. I know that what you did to me in the intermission was very reprehensible, but you just _don't _do what that l'Argent girl did. Now I know that you just had no choice. Now, I can forgive you for the trouble you've brought onto me. I will progress to the semifinal."

"First things first, it is in our best interests if everyone has one of each case by the time the game ends. That way, we'll make ten million dollars from this game. Once you have four cases of four different values from four different players, take your cart to the wall and stay there until halftime. There is no reason for anyone to get any blood on their hands. And so the trades started. I had no idea that Schilling could show any gesture of altruism. Well, in any case, I already have four cases from four people, so I take my place against the wall and wait for the game to end. As others trade cases, they find it much easier to trade cases, since once the deal is done, the cases have changed hands and they can look inside to see whether they were lied to. If you lose the trust of other players, you won't do very well in this game. This game is not zero-sum. It can happen that everyone profit, or it can happen that nobody profit. If everyone has an even score at the end of this game, then we'll have enough to pay off everyone's debts with money to burn.

One by one, the others joined me on the wall, with Wilma and Richard being the last two to trade to an break-even score. There were still about four hours left in the game. Still, Wilma took this time to confirm who wanted to progress to the semifinal.

"So it will be myself, Grace and Richard advacing to the semifinal. Is there still anyone else who wants to move on?" Nobody raised their hands. This confirmed the three who would advance to the semifinal.

"Wait, I want to give three gold bars to Dennis, this will give all of us 10 each."

"Oh, almost forgot about that." Dennis responded. He and I returned to a bargaining table and I gave him three gold bars. This gave us all a profit of one million dollars. We returned to the wall and waited for halftime.

The clock then counted down to three hours remaining, at that time, all of us declared the game over. Part of the wall lowered, revealing a television screen.

"This game has ended. Please direct your attention to the screen that has just appeared. We will now display the results for this game.

Wilma Schilling 0  
>Grace Black 0<br>Makoto Saunders 0  
>Evan Baker 0<br>Chris Milton 0  
>Dennis Lyndman 0<br>Clancy Dunbar 0  
>Richard Fox 0<br>Alisha Wolstein 0  
>Angela Sanchez 0<p>

"There is a ten way tie for first place, all tied players will have the option of advancing to the semifinal or exit without penalty. Please indicate your intention to advance or not advance at the checkout desk just outside of this room. If there are more than three who wish to advance, they must settle the dispute amongst themselves within one hour of the end of the last semifinal section or a random drawing will resolve the question." The ten of us started to exit the room to check out.

"Wait, there's one last thing I need to tell you." We stopped. "I didn't think it was possible for all of us to collude, cooperate, team up, whatever expression you want to use. I want to thank you all by giving you each $100,000." The nine other players cheered at this gift. It made them want to check out even sooner. The words "thank you" filled the venue and the group all left to checkout.

**15:10**

**Checkout**

The gold we each had at the time the game ended was given to us as cash. This means that we each received one million dollars. For six of us, this was enough to clear our debts. But in the case of Chris, owing 250,000; Richard, owing 960,000; and myself, owing about 630,000; we still had not cleared our debts. I don't normally trust people that easily, but something about Wilma's story made me want to cut all ties with Sylvie. Why else did Sylvie have so much against the people behind this Confidence Trick? Sure, they more or less killed her brother, but that still gives her no right to ruin the lives of dozens of investors. It doesn't matter that none of them were driven to suicide. Only now do I realise that there is much more to this Confidence Trick than money. Profiting takes a back seat in this Confidence Trick now. I feel... like a changed woman.

In the end, the extra money was pooled and all of my debts, as well as those of Richard and Chris were paid off with $1,704,500 left. We decided to split this sum ten ways, each of us would receive $170,450. Wilma still decided to thank us by giving us each $100,000 on top of everyone's cut. Everyone in the group had their debts cleared with $270,450 each to spare. Wilma, Richard and myself were each given a nametag bearing the player's name and the word "Semifinalist". Finally, the qualifiers and the non-qualifiers were separated. The non-qualiiers exited the way they came while the qualifiers were escorted back to the venue to wait for all of the other sections to finish their game. It was then I decided to have a talk with Wilma about her altruistic behavior.

"I was also swindled once." When she looked me straight in the eye, I knew she wanted to listen to my story. "I got a letter in the mail. The letter had a list of five names and addresses with instructions to make two copies of the letter, crossout the address at the top of each copy, add my own address to the bottom, send the original letter and $5,000 to the address at the top and send each copy to a different address. This would give me $80,000 in return for the $5,000 I mailed. But like any get-rich-quick scheme, it was too good to be true. Most of the people involved were never paid. I just lost my life savings to a scam. I had been laid off, so I had no way to pay rent. I lost my apartment, I was dead weight. And then, I heard about the Confidence Trick. I came at first, just for the money..." I stopped.

"Keep going, I'm still listening."

"Sorry about that, wasn't sure if you were. Anyway, because of you, I have enough money to live large for the next two years. But, because of you, I no longer care about wealth. When I heard your story, making Sylvie pay for all the lives she ruined became my purpose in this Confidence Trick. Now, I know how you feel."

"Grace... thank you... for trusting me. I didn't know if you would believe me... after everything you've been through." I saw a tear roll down Wilma's face. Richard and I were there to comfort Wilma. "After the intermission, I thought about everyone whose lives I ruined. After every game, I think about those five. I want to give closure to everyone who trusted Sylvie only to be betrayed, but if I ruin more lives than she did, my prescence here is pointless. I am so glad I found you, Richard, maybe I can rest easier tonight. Do you happen to know what happened to them?"

"During Part 3. Each of the five of us shouldered 2 million dollars in debt. But the man who won in Part 2 came back even though he had won $15 million. He came in with $6 million to spare and happened to be a multi millionaire who only came here to pass the time. He told us that he had had enough and offered to reimburse our debts. Jeongju, Taylor, Lance and Brad all took him up on the offer and were out of the Confidence Trick. I wanted to take my revenge on you so I chose to move on but he insisted that I take the money. In later games, I lost almost 2 million and ended back up on square one. But now that I've finally found you and found out more about you, it was worth the trouble I put myself through. Everyone's okay, Wilma."

The moment she heard that everyone was okay, she threw herself into Richard's arms. "Oh my God... Thank you, Richard! I don't know what I would do if I found out I had a hand in ruining someone's life! Thank you so much, Richard!"

Thus ended the Quarterfinal of the Confidence Trick, leaving us to wait for the other sections to finish. 33 of us would meet for the Semifinal. We were one step closer.


	49. Manhunt

**18:15  
><strong>**April 2  
><strong>**Grace Black**

After three hours of waiting, the other sections have finished.

"All sections of the Quarterfinal have finished. Please follow me to the main lobby." Richard, Wilma and I followed the CT official to the lobby through which we entered. At the lobby, we saw the other 30 Semifinalists. Dana and Sylvie were among them. Ashley was nowhere to be found. Did she lose? Did she escape? Uncertainty enveloped my mind as I try and fail to confirm whether or not she became another victim of the Confidence Trick. I know that neither Dana nor Sylvie had anything to do with this. But they, and sadly, I, each had a hand in her entry into this Part of the Confidence Trick. Dana almost certainly knew that Sylvie brought down a huge firm, but not how she did it. This is why Dana hasn't cut ties with Sylvie.

Dana and Sylvie are talking about Ashley's absence and how it worries them, especially how it worries Dana.

"Oh God, Ashley isn't here!"

Sylvie just sighed in reaction to this news. She tilted her head forward and rubbed her forehead slowly.

"Hey! Are you Dana Andrews?!"

Dana turns around and confirms that he is indeed Dana Andrews.

"Siegel Redwood. Don't you worry about Miss Ashley Baelz, she is safe along with everyone in my group." Dana sighed in relief now that he knew that she was safe, concluding that Siegel played in the same group. But this was the Confidence Trick and Siegel could be lying about the whole thing. But he was the only source of information who came forward so Dana gave himself no choice but to trust him.

Siegel continued. "There was someone in our group named Peter Eagleden. He effectively had control of the whole game for a while, another player, Gentarou Suzuki, turned to his side and worked with him to share in the winnings. They finished 1-2 and won two of the three spots in the semifinal. The eight of us had to band together and decide which one of us would advance. As a group, we would owe more than $2.2 million. It was then that I stepped forward to shoulder that debt. I owed $1.8 million and no player could take on an additional debt exceeding $1 million from this game. $2.2 million minus $1.8 million equaled $400,000, so it would work out. That means that everyone in my group except for me, Suzuki and Eagleden made it out safely."

"Thank you for telling me, I was worried that something might have happened to her." Dana, being Dana, was quick to trust Siegel's words. That son of a bitch gives his trust too easily. But he is capable of carrying out a plan that requires him to be deceptive. So it should come as no surprise that he made it this far. He would be very useful against Sylvie. I mull over Dana and his qualities until a voice sounds and demands quiet.

"Welcome! To the Semifinal of the Confidence Trick! 33 of you have made it this far in this long competition! You were selected from 110 Quarterfinalists, selected from approximately 6000 participants! Each of you wanted to be here more than anyone else! And that is why you are all here. With that said, we shall divide you into five groups, three groups of 7 players and two groups of 6 players. One at a time, each of you will draw a number. There are two pots. One pot has six of each number. The other pot has one of each number. Before we start, we will draw three numbers from this pot and add them to the first pot. Mr. Williams, if you will." Williams reached into the pot and drew three times. 1... 4... 2... Williams showed each number in full view as he put them into the pot.

"You all saw that! Sections 1, 2 and 4 will have seven players each. Sections 3 and 5 will have six players each. I will just give it another good shuffle." The man shook the larger pot until he felt that the numbers inside were shuffled well enough to be completely random. "Now! Will each and every one of you please draw a number. Before that, let me tell you a little secret." He paused for effect like any game show host would do. "When this Semifinal finishes... ten of you will advance to the Grand Finale. I have taken the liberty of showing the Grand Prize for this Grand Finale." It was then that we noticed an elevator door open up. Inside, two armed guards and the cash prize that they protect.

"Twenty million dollars! With this kind of money, you can live in heaven on earth. Now, America taxes pretty much everything you get your hands on. Never you mind that, because we have taken care of all of the taxes, all wins are after taxes and we will even pay taxes on any money owed to us by losing players. We were aware of this issue when we started this Confidence Trick and took it upon ourselves to ensure that no player's winnings were abridged by government collection. We are not in this for money, although that would be nice. We are here to give people a chance to turn their lives around even if it comes at our own expense." Well, that made no sense. Why would they do something in which they _expect_ to lose money? It might have something to do with the fact that in earlier games, you could forfeit half of your winnings to safely keep the other half. Dana mentioned that back in the Intermission. Every game that was played so far was either a zero-sum game, meaning that the only profit for the CT was through players quitting, or a non-zero-sum game designed for money to leave the game when players struggled to win and have everyone lose. That is how they profit. That is how they win. So they don't really care about what happens. Unless everything goes against them, they will profit. They know that there is always a risk with running games like these. But our real target is Sylvie Montaigne. Without her, this Confidence Trick wouldn't even be.

As he stood there shaking the box of ping pong balls up and down. "With that, we will start the draw for the Semifinal. One at a time, you will come up to draw a number from this box. Seven of you will be drawn into each of groups 1, 2 and 4 while six of you will be drawn into each of groups 3 and 5. Everyone, come up to draw!" The 33 of us formed a line to draw for groups. As expected, Dana and Sylvie as well as their new friend Siegel stood next to each other for the draw. They were from what I see, just behind the front 10. Wilma, Richard and I were towards the back, in about the 26th, 27th and 28th spots. When the turns of Sylvie, Siegel and Dana came up, they drew, and sighed. I could hear Siegel say "good luck guys" to his two friends. The three were escorted upstairs. There was a chance that they were drawn into the same group. But enough of my thoughts have been on them. Eventually, it was our turn to draw.

Richard came to draw first. He drew 4. Then it became Wilma's turn. She drew 1. Finally, it was my turn to draw. I pray that I draw into either group 1 or 4. I take a ping pong ball from the box. It showed the number 1. "Yes! 1!" Wilma and I were to be in the same group again. The last time we were drawn in the same group, we were enemies. But I found out why she was here in the first place and came to understand her. Now we would enter a game as allies. We were escorted to the venue of the Semifinal. We passed the venues for the Quarterfinal and climbed a stairwell to the next floor. On the left were the venues numbered 1, 3, and 5. On the right, were the venues numbered 2 and 4. Wilma and I went left, Richard went right and I wished him luck for this next game.

When we entered the venue, there were four people already there, staring at a grid of white squares. This may very well be the centerpiece for this Semifinal. Fortunately, or unfortunately, Sylvie wasn't there, meaning we would have to wait until the Grand Finale to face off. But before we could play in the Grand Finale, we needed to win here, and before we could win here, we had to know the rules and we had only six people in a group of seven. Minutes passed until finally, the seventh player for this game arrived. With all of the players in the room, the game was set to begin.

"Welcome to the Semifinal of the Confidence Trick!" The white squares were replaced with a recording of a man in charge of this game. "I am Bryce Estes and I will be the Croupier for this game. The time is 18:30, I think we can get this game done before midnight. Today, maybe even into tomorrow, you will play a game of minesweeper. Normally, Minesweeper is a solo game, but there have been variants for multiple players, both competitive and cooperative. Ladies and Gentlemen, we present Manhunt!" Manhunt, huh. Minesweeper... hmm. "Allow me to explain the rules:"

- The game is played on the 12-by-12 playing field that you saw on the floor when you came in  
>- Each player begins with five soldiers on the grid, randomly placed, on 35 of the 144 squares<br>- For the first round, the players each name a square on the field. If there are any soldiers on those squares, they will be randomly relocated to different squares. The selected squares will show a number that will refer to how many soldiers occupy the eight squares surrounding the selected square.  
>- The order for each round is determined randomly.<br>- In each round, each player in random order either "surveys" a square or "fires" upon it  
>- A survey reveals either the number of soldiers surrounding that square or a soldier that happens to be in that square, not unlike the first round. Warning! If you survey a square and find an enemy soldier, the soldier will be revealed, but you must pay them $1 million<br>- A fire command fires upon that square, but gives no other information about the surrounding area. However, a player can win money by firing on enemy soldiers. Every kill wins $1 million from the soldier's owner. But choose wisely, if you miss, you will pay $500,000 to be split among all remaining opponents and everyone will know which squares you fire on, so they can base their moves on yours.  
>- A round ends when all players have had a turn. The order for the next round as with all rounds will be determined randomly. Any players without any soldiers left for any reason will be eliminated from the game and forfeit $100,000 to each player still in the game. Please note that a player is not eliminated until after the round in which she loses her last soldier.<br>- This game is scored as follows.

* +$1,000,000 for a confirmed kill, paid by the soldier's owner  
>* A miss requires a player to give $500,000 for the remaining opponents to split.<br>* -$1,000,000 for surveying and revealing an enemy soldier, payable to that soldier's owner

-There will be scoreboards showing each player's number of remaining soldiers and current winnings and losses. For the sake of simplicity, winnings and losses will be displayed to the nearest $1,000

-The players will be ranked as follows

* 1st place: The sole survivor (if there is one)  
>* All other ranks determined by amount of money won or lost.<p>

-The two highest ranked players who wish to advance to the Grand Finale will advance, the other players will leave at absolutely no penalty. Yes, you heard me right, as a token of our appreciation to the players, any player passing up the opportunity to go to the Grand Finale will _not _have to pay half of their winnings to exit.

"Now, this is a lot of information to learn. And the best way to learn a game is with a practice round. You will each start with one soldier on a 6-by-6 board. To make it more interesting, you will receive 10% of the money you would have received had this been the real deal. Each of you can be identified by the color appearing next to your name on the scoreboard. Now let's start the game. For the first round, all seven selected squares will be revealed simultaneously, none of these will contain soldiers. We will determine the playing order for each round randomly. The first player: Wilma Schilling."

Wilma was the first to play, but before she made up her mind, she had a question to ask. "You haven't told us where we can see where our soldiers are."

"Ah, yes, good question Ms. Schilling. That information will be made available after the first round of the game. During the first round, your soldiers could be moved around. To see where your soldiers are, you will enter one of seven booths. Just place your hand over a scanner beside the entrance and the door will unlock. To make the sharing of information impossible, you will be required to do this again inside the booth. There will be a scanner next to a screen. If the two hands don't match, then nothing will happen. Please note that the booths are only large enough to accommodate one person."

"Alright."

"Please note that during rounds, you will all enter booths and when it comes to your turn, you will input your action. Everyone will be able to see the results of every action. Note that you must be in a booth to input any action. For this first round, all actions will be verbally declared."

"Then, F1!"

"F1 it is." The square F1 was highlighted in black. "Next, Akane D'Antonio-Iwatani."

"D4!"

"Next, Naomi Godwinson."

"E2."

"Next, Paul Koenig."

"A2."

"Next, Gabriele Greco."

"B5."

"Next, Grace Black."

I thought for just a moment. "C4."

"Finally, Ashley Cole VII."

"Ahhhh... F6."

"That completes the first round. The selected squares are marked in black." We will now reveal the selected squares. Please note that these will all have numbers." The seven squares selected in the first round were revealed.

? 2 ? ? ? ?  
>? ? ? ? 1 ?<br>? ? ? 0 ? ?  
>? ? ? 1 ? ?<br>? 1 ? ? ? ?  
>1 ? ? ? ? 1<p>

*_Author's note: the numbers refer to columns and the letters refer to rows._

"After each move, we will automatically reveal any squares that do not offer any new information. If the number of soldiers surrounding a safe square is 100% obvious, then the square will automatically be revealed to prevent time wasting. Please enter your booths. After everyone has entered a booth, we will reveal the playing order for the next round. Please note that in the real game, after every round starting with the second, there will be a break of five minutes. This five minute break will allow you to strategise, collude, do whatever you please as long as it falls within the rules of the game. For this practice game, there will be only two minutes between rounds. For now, please enter your booths so that we may start the second round of the game." Each of us made our way to a booth, identified ourselves, entered, identified ourselves again and the locations of each of our soldiers were revealed. Mine was at F5, the search at F6 revealed that there was one soldier in either F5, E5, or E6. Now, I knew that E5 and E6 were safe, but if I used this information to its fullest, then I would lose this game, can't do that when the game is for real. Then again, there was other information to use, like the 0 at C4. But let's see where I fall in the order.

1. Naomi Godwinson  
>2. Paul Koenig<br>3. Ashley Cole VII  
>4. Wilma Schilling<br>5. Grace Black  
>6. Akane D'Antonio Iwatani<br>7. Gabriele Greco

Fifth, huh.

**Wilma Schilling**

**18:35**

My soldier was at A5, B5 was already revealed in the first round. Everyone else knew that B3, B4, C3, C5, D3 and D5 were completely safe from the 0 at D4. But I had the advantage (or disadvantage of knowing that A4, A6, B6 and C6 were also safe. This meant that out of 36 squares, 7 have been revealed, 1 has my soldier on it, 6 that everyone knows are safe, and 4 that only I know are safe. If I make a random guess, my odds are 1 in 18. However, with the 2 on A2, there is a 2 in 4 chance to score. But acting on those odds will have to wait until my turn comes up. The order for this round appears.

1. Naomi Godwinson  
>2. Paul Koenig<br>3. Ashley Cole VII  
>4. Wilma Schilling<br>5. Grace Black  
>6. Akane D'Antonio Iwatani<br>7. Gabriele Greco

This will give me three actions worth of information to use. All I need to do is wait for everyone ahead of me to take their turns. Godwinson decides to take a gamble on firing at B2, no dice. Two in three now. Koenig takes his turn, he decides to fire on E1. It pays off for him. Greco's soldier was on E1. Greco will get a turn like everyone else, but this round would be his last this game. A 1 appears on F2 because of the 1s on F1 and E2 and the dead soldier on E1, meaning that F2 must be a 1.

? 2 ? ? ? ?  
>? _ ? ? 1 ?<br>? ? ? 0 ? ?  
>? ? ? 1 ? ?<br>X 1 ? ? ? ?  
>1 1 ? ? ? 1<p>

Next up, Cole. He decides to take a chance with firing like the two before him did. A1. The shot is true and Koenig is out of the game, his winnings from his kill before cancelled out. My turn comes up. The only thing to do is to play it safe, I survey D3, as it is next to the 0 at C4. What do you know, 1. That opens up another 50-50 at E4 and E5.

X 2 ? ? ? ?  
>? _ ? ? 1 ?<br>? ? ? 0 ? ?  
>? ? 1 1 ? ?<br>X 1 ? ? ? ?  
>1 1 ? ? ? 1<p>

Grace is the next to play. She takes a chance on the 50-50 at A3 and B1. She fires on A3 and nothing comes up. And that spells the end for whoever owns the soldier at B1. Iwatani fires on B1 and eliminates Cole. This leaves Greco, now left with nothing to lose. He goes 50-50 between E4 and E5. He fires on E5 and comes up empty.

X 2 _ ? ? ?  
>X _ ? ? 1 ?<br>? ? ? 0 ? ?  
>? ? 1 1 ? ?<br>X 1 ? ? _ ?  
>1 1 ? ? ? 1<p>

Three players were eliminated in this second round. There were many gambles taken and much strategy. But even more would be needed for the third round. Four players remain in this practice game. There are four soldiers on the board and 12 possible locations. Plus, we know for sure that there is a soldier at E4. It's a matter of who plays first next round. If the owner plays first, then the player after her would take the chance. Otherwise, the first player would get a free kill.

**Author's Note: Well, this I believe is the first chapter of this story uploaded from College Park. Due to classes, etc., I will not devote as much time to writing as I would like. Expect a chapter every week and a half. We're almost there, readers. The Semifinal and then the Grand Finale, two games left. I am currently debating whether to upload the Grand Finale as its own story, like for **_**Liar Game: The Final Stage**_**. After I finish the story, I will begin a series of new games called **_**Confidence Trick: Encore**_**, which will be (almost) completely separate from the storyline of **_**Confidence Trick **_**except for returning characters.**

**I welcome reviews and PMs of all types, positive, negative, game suggestions, behind the scenes questions, and so on. I thank everyone who has read every chapter and put up with bad writing, revisions to chapters long after they've been uploaded, week(s) long hiatuses and so many other problems. **

**Read and Review**

** -66sixx**


	50. The ReaL DeaL

X 2 _ ? ? ?  
>X _ ? ? 1 ?<br>? ? ? 0 ? ?  
>? ? 1 1 ? ?<br>X 1 ? ? _ ?  
>1 1 ? ? ? 1<p>

There were four soldiers left on the field. Given the information on this grid, there was a certain soldier on E4. The first player between the players who did not own that soldier would get a free kill and $110,000. Also, there was a soldier on either F5 or E6. Those two kills would boil down to the playing order for this round. But we would have to wait for this two minute interval to end. This would be a great time to strategise, but nobody would just out the location of their soldier, maybe in the real game where each of us gets five so we can use a couple to trade information. But even then, we would be very cautious about trading. However, alliances were not out of the question. It would be a big leap of faith, but eventually, I decided that I could out my location to a close friend. I found Grace and whispered into her ear.

"How about we make a few promises. If one of our soldiers is in danger of being found, we tell the other about it and they don't shoot there."

She whispered "I was thinking of the same thing. But we can't do anything should our soldiers be found and shot in the same round. That's the only downside to forming a team."

"Well, we already are friends, aren't we." A moment of insight. Even though she was my friend, with stakes like these and every reason to betray me, would she?

"Listen, I want to give you some information that could help you."

"What is it?"

"My soldier is on A5."

"That's crazy, are you trying to give me a free kill?"

"Maybe, maybe not. I trust you, so what you do with the information I just gave you will decide if you trust me. As long as you recognise the importance of our mission, I don't care what you do. All this game can do is give us money or take it away. As long as we get to meet Sylvie in the Grand Finale, you may do anything you wish."

"Then whatever happens here, we're still friends." That went without saying. Then I thought that it would actually be a good thing for Grace to 'betray me' here. If her betrayal came to pass, then nobody would think we were working together. It was as if she was saying that she put her trust in me.

Once time ran out, the next round of play started and the four remaining players entered booths. Each of us waited for the playing order for this round to show on the screen.

1. Akane D'Antonio-Iwatani  
>2. Naomi Godwinson<br>3. Grace Black  
>4. Wilma Schilling<p>

I was set to play last in this round. It was now Iwatani's turn to play. She had already gained about $150,000 in this practice round. Surprisingly, or unsurprisingly, she did not take the free kill at E4, instead shooting at F5. This would eliminate Grace, but only after she had her turn. But first, it was Godwinson's turn to play. With two soldiers not including her own still on the board, and having scored near zero in this game so far, she took the free kill at E4 and eliminated Iwatani.

Now it was Grace's turn at the board. I had given her the location of my soldier at A5. Given that she had lost her soldier, it would come as no surprise to me if I was eliminated in this round. In fact, I'm actually hoping that she does this because then no one will know that we were working together. That would be a nice position to have, but it's not something that's absolutely critical to our game. It doesn't even matter that Godwinson would be the last one standing if Grace does in fact take me out. This is a practice round after all, only useful for strategising. To me, cash was never more than a tool to me. Now that I know that I had no hand in ruining the lives of others, it becomes much easier for me to progress in this game. Her move appears on the board, a shot at A5 to end the game. By this point, I had thought of too many strategies to discuss in time I would have between rounds. I was glad that this game ended when it did.

**Author's note: I used colors to keep track of which soldiers belonged to whom, but these colors do not appear on the map anywhere, at least not to the reader. I had decided that repeatedly going back and checking which player was paired with which color was too tedious to reproduce here. From the reader's point of view, the soldiers will instead be identified by the name of their owner rather than a color. If you have not already gotten the diagram, numbers represent the number of soldiers adjacent to that square (including diagonals), X's represent soldiers killed, underscores (_) represent failed shots, squares that were shot at but contained no soldier, and asterisks (*) will represent soldiers whose squares were surveyed rather than shot at. **

What I found from this game was that this game is impossible to win solo unless you're very lucky. The last one standing would be ranked first regardless of whether they won or lost money on this game. The other players would be ranked by the amount of money won or lost. The two highest ranked players would advance to the Finale unless they waived this right to the third, fourth, fifth and so on down the list until two players chose to progress to the Finale.

It was then that I thought of the likely scenario that only one of us would advance to the Grand Finale. I was confident that Grace would carry on our mission to defeat Sylvie. But about anyone else, I don't think anyone would care. We are in the Semifinal, so there will be people who want to move on to the Finale. But there are others with debts and I have won 10 million dollars from the Confidence Trick, but in four of the seven games I've played, winning meant for certain that someone lost. With a surplus of 10 million dollars, how will anyone trust me enough to help me get to the Finale? No one will deal with me if they know that I've won 10 million from the Confidence Trick. Because the first question they will ask is where I got that money. I have to hope that there is someone else who is here for money, even though they may try for a spot in the Finale where they can get 20 million dollars. There may be one, two, hell, it's possible for all of us to be pursuing a place in the Finale. It may be possible that no one wants to progress and Grace and I have free places. But I can't count on that...

"We will now start the real game. For the first round, as in the practice game, all surveyed squares will be declared verbally, the named squares will all be revealed at the same time with any soldiers in those squares only being moved to random locations. The scoreboard has been reset, any winnings or losses (which are 10% of the value of the same perfomance had that been the real game) will be added to your total winnings for all purposes except ranking players aside from the sole survivor. The playing order will be displayed on this screen in a moment."

1. Gabriele Greco  
>2. Naomi Godwinson<br>3. Akane D'Antonio-Iwatani  
>4. Ashley Cole VII<br>5. Wilma Schilling  
>6. Grace Black<br>7. Paul Koenig

The grid was now the full 12x12 size with 35 soldiers, the rows are still lettered A to L, the columns are still numbered, except for the last three columns, lettered X, Y and Z. Perhaps they wanted to limit each row and column to one character, A1 could be mistaken for A11.

My first thought was that any squares that were guaranteed safe and could not possibly offer any information on the whereabouts of any soldiers would be automatically revealed. The squares B2, BY, K2 and KY came to mind. If those squares were revealed to not have any soldiers, then the other three squares in that corner would be revealed. But I was to play fifth while Grace would play immediately following me.

Greco made his move, followed by the others. It seems that they have each arrived at my idea to speed up the game, B2, BY, K2 and KY were the first four squares picked. If any of those four come up zero, then that entire corner will be revealed. It comes as no surprise to me that these four squares were picked first, we all want to go home and this won't affect any probabilities relating to the game. If a square next to a border comes up zero, then the appropriate border square would show up zero. Columns 2 and Y and Rows B and K have potential at the start of this game, especially if they were two squares from the first four moves at the "corners".

"K4." I say. Grace follows with I2 and Koenig ends the round with D2.

"We will now reveal the selected squares."

**Author's Note: Well, it's been about a month since the last update. Between classes, playing pool, papers, and other things, I haven't gotten around to writing this much. This update pretty much serves as a sign of life for this story. To all readers: I am still alive and well. Thank you for not worrying!**


	51. The Third Round

The grid lit up. Five of the seven squares revealed numbers ranging from one to three. However, the two squares at the top left corner of the grid, B2 and D2, revealed zeros. This meant that all eight squares from A1 to D2 were all guaranteed to be empty and provided no useful information so they were shown as zeros to speed up the game. 13 of the 144 squares were revealed in this first round, another seven were guaranteed empty but still hid information. Everyone had odds of 30 in 124, about 24% of scoring. What caught everyone's eyes was the 3 at K2, a 37.5% chance of a kill.

With Grace and I "no longer" working together, well, there doesn't seem to be a way to work together without revealing where your soldiers are, all that's left to do is to wait for the order of play for the next round to appear. I begin to see that the three men in this game are talking to one another. I think about everything that can happen in a group of three. Since they are all on equal footing more or less, two can betray the third, one can try to betray the other two only to be conquered, all three can actually work together or the alliance can fall apart.

By accident or by design, I let five minutes pass without talking to anyone.

"We will now prepare for the next round of this game. Please enter your booths. We will reveal the playing order for this round as soon as all seven players have entered booths. The seven of us enter seven booths. We await for the playing order to appear on the screen.

1. Gabriele Greco  
>2. Grace Black<br>3. Paul Koenig  
>4. Wilma Schilling<br>5. Akane D'Antonio-Iwatani  
>6. Ashley Cole VII<br>7. Naomi Godwinson

I am set to play fourth in this round. The 3 at K2 catches my eye. None of my soldiers are there so I have a 3 in 8 chance of scoring. But there are three people ahead of me. Still, one or more of them might have soldiers in those eight squares and therefore might not take the chance because it isn't there. Greco's turn to play and he _doesn't _take the chance, instead surveying C3, showing a 2, a 67% chance of a hit for the next player, Grace! She either owns a soldier there or she has a great shot at being one step closer to the Finale. Next, Grace plays, a shot on K3, a miss and a tell that she has a soldier, likely both in the B4-D4 segment. Not only that, but she left a 3 in 7 as well as a 2 in 3. Koenig takes the opportunity and shoots at C4, a hit and first blood on Grace. With this development, it became my turn. I had a 3 in 7 at L1-J3. My gut tells me to go for J3, no dice and we are down almost 2 million dollars this early in the game.

Things get worse from there. Iwatani goes for the 50-50 at B4-D4, shooting at D4 and killing Grace's second soldier. Cole surveys B3, 1 soldier already revealed and killed at C4. This reveals A3. Finally, it's Godwinson's turn. She takes the 3 in 6 at L1-J3, shooting at K1 and scoring on Cole, leaving the board like this.

The second round ended with Grace unavoidably losing two of her five soldiers and the two of us both missing our shots, $2.8 million down. Things were starting to fall apart, at this rate, neither of us would get to the Finale. During the five minute interval, Grace and I stand lost in thought, staring at the grid, thinking about where our next move should be. At the top right was a 25% chance, the bottom right gave a 1 in 8, hardly worth it. The lower left corner still had a 2 in 5, but one of those soldiers could belong to Grace. If only she would tell me where her soldiers are so I don't commit any sort of friendly fire. Losing two soldiers may have been inevitable, but we're in the hole now and it's not too late to get back together. The three men in this game are already working together, so there's no point in keeping our alliance a secret. I try to communicate with Grace, but she brushes me off. I have no idea what's in her head, but we have to start coordinating our efforts. It was a mistake to separate for the first two rounds. She needs me more than I need her.

"So, we're already down 3 million."

"Yes, Wilma. But not everyone here really wants to go to the Finale. How about we ask around? We could be the only two who actually want in."

"The thing is, no one has to tell the truth and anyone can change their mind as to whether or not they want a place in the finale. There's nothing wrong with saying you want in and changing your mind, but we'll have problems if someone who doesn't want in comes forward. I know for certain that at least one of us will get to the finale. But you're right, we should ask around. It's the only way to get any sort of idea as to the goals of the other players."

"Then let's get cracking." Grace and I will talk with the other players to see what their goals for this game are. But that will have to wait, time had run out and it was time for us to return to our booths. Shit. Don't even know if I should go for a hit this round. But the odds are in my favour. 90%, 27 of 30 of the soldiers that don't belong to me do not belong to Grace either, even if I hit one of the three that do happen to belong to Grace, between the two of us, we'll just break even on the hit. So I shouldn't care if I hit one of her soldiers, but that means taking her one step closer to the exit. No risk, no reward.

Once we re-entered the booths, the playing order for this round came onto our screens.

1. Grace Black  
>2. Akane D'Antonio-Iwatani<br>3. Naomi Godwinson  
>4. Ashley Cole VII<br>5. Paul Koenig  
>6. Wilma Schilling<br>7. Gabriele Greco

Grace is playing first this round. She has first shot at the bottom left corner, a 2 in 5 chance. Finally, I'll know if she's in the line of fire at that corner. She takes a shot inside that corner, L3, but this shot misses. Still, I know she's not in the line of fire at that corner, which now has a 2 in 4 chance. On the other side of the wall of failed attacks, there are two soldiers in five squares in the L3-J5 square. I have one soldier there, now I'm in the line of fire. There are four people ahead of me this round. The other players take their turns as I think of the possible scenarios. But thinking becomes difficult as the players take their turns quickly, giving me 15 or 20 seconds to contemplate the results of their choices.

Iwatani takes a shot on L4, missing and leaving another 2 in 4, a 50-50, and three players in front of me. What I see is a 2 in 4 on the left and a 1 in 3 on the right. With three people in front of me...

Godwinson's turn finishes and the sound accompanying a change in a square startles me. J4 lights up red to indicate a hit. _No fucking way_. She had taken out Grace's third soldier! That makes three of the four soldiers killed in this game. Three out of four! Is there something against her? Two people in front of me and a 2 in 4 and a 1 in 3 on the bottom left of the board. Cole and Koenig. I'm out of the path of the storm for now unless one of them has a soldier next to that 3, the 2 in 4 is a better shot than a 1 in 3. But I have to hope that at least one of them misses. Cole takes his shot.

Just when I thought it couldn't get any worse, it gets worse. Cole shot at K5, and took out my first soldier. How did I manage to stay calm from Part One to the Quarters? How did I manage to win 10 million dollars? Why is everything falling apart for me and Grace? At this point?

I forget that the game is still going and that Koenig is about to take his turn. The logical thing to do unless he has soldiers in that corner is to shoot at either J1, J2, L1, or L2. His shot is aimed at L1. A miss! Something finally goes our way! And that leaves a 2 in 3 for me! J1, J2 or L2? Which two will yield a hit? I have no way of finding out until I take that all-important shot.

The only thing to do is to pick randomly. J1 it is. I input J1, and touch "shoot". The touchscreen asks me to confirm. "SHOOT AT J1: ARE YOU SURE?" The screen locks for five seconds so the player can make absolutely sure that they are doing the right thing. I confirm that this is what I want to do.

J1 flashes red. "Ashley Cole VII has lost a soldier. $1 million awarded to Wilma Schilling from Cole!" The screen flashes. I knew that I wasn't out of the woods yet, but things were taking a turn for the better. I'm out of the line of fire, Grace is almost certainly out of it as well given that she has only two soldiers left. 29 soldiers left and only 2 are hers. The last player to go this round is Greco. He chooses to take a shot at L2. Iwatani's first casualty this game. The round ends with a cluster of unhelpful squares being revealed.

We lost another $700,000 or so, but the memory of the worst case scenario was gone when we finally scored one kill. We could breathe easy for now.

**Author's Note: Well that does it for Chapter 51. Whew! I had three midterms and a paper getting in the way of this. Such a relief to finally have it done. I thank everyone who didn't give up on this fic, who didn't think that this fic had died. I know 3 weeks is a while for an update from someone who churned out 3 chapters in 2 weeks over the summer. Everyone still reading this, please tell me you are still here with me. I look forward to writing the next chapter of Confidence Trick. If there is anyone out there, please read and review. Until next time!**

**Another Note: Freaking doc editor on this site deleted parts of the grid so I can't show it in the story. The other chapters may have this problem as well.  
>I have decided to delete the grids from this chapter. I apologise to my readers, but you will have to make your own grid and keep track of what's going on yourselves since these grids get screwed up by FF's doc editor. Anyways, until next time!<strong>


	52. Turn For the Better

**Current Standings:**

These are ordered by number of remaining soldiers and then by amount of money gained or lost.

Naomi Godwinson: 5 soldiers left, $2,333,333  
>Gabriele Greco: 5 soldiers left, $1,333,333<br>Paul Koenig: 5 soldiers left, $750,000  
>Wilma Schilling: 4 soldiers left, -$250,000<br>Akane D'Antonio-Iwatani: 4 soldiers left, -$250,000  
>Ashley Cole VII: 3 soldiers left, -$666,667<br>Grace Black: 2 soldiers left, -$3,250,000

_Due to rounding to the nearest dollar, the profits and losses may not necessarily add to $0_.

After three rounds, Grace and I have lost 3.5 million dollars and neither of us look like we were on our way to the Finale. Since we just finished a round, we would have five minutes to talk to the other players and figure out what their plans were. Everyone here either wants out or wants in. How many want in? That was the question that we were set to answer. I was about to ask each of the other players one on one. Until Grace brought all of them together. Then I realised that I could work with anyone as long as it wasn't Montaigne, l'Argent or Andrews. It was in all of our best interests to work together. Good thinking, Grace!

"How many of you want to go on to the Finale!?" As expected, no one raised their hands. "Come on, don't be afraid!" Grace raised her arm in affirmation of her willingness to move on. I do the same. "Alright! That's two!"

"Anyone here just want money?" As expected, no one raised their hands to this question. "I have money. How much do you owe? Don't be afraid to say anything.

"Two and a half million 'cause of people like you!" Greco shouted. "Is nothing sacred?! Is there no one to trust?!"

"I can't answer those questions, but thank you for answering my question. I have ten million dollars."

"And how did you get that, huh? Did you take it from someone?!"

"I will admit, yes, I did lie and cheat to get this money, but everyone I lied to managed to later exit without owing anything. Don't you recall the last game we played, or the whole of Part Four? Don't you think that's how I made up for the money I stole?"

"No, you didn't."

"Yes, I did! In my group, we won the maximum ten million dollars. Our group had everyone in debt aside from myself. Luckily, they, I mean we didn't owe too much, so we were able to cover everyone's debts with over 2.5 million to spare. Split 10 ways, we each won a quarter of a million in that one game and no one went home in the red."

"That's exactly what happened in my group!" Koenig realised. "But in our group, all of us were in the red, owing a grand total of 10,937,500 dollars. Even if everything went right, there would still be almost a million dollars unaccounted for. And it was guaranteed that three of us would progress to the Semifinal. Ultimately, I was one of the three who would move on to this point in the Confidence Trick. Our combined debt of 937,000 was split three ways among the semifinalists from my group. That comes out to $312,500. Greco, how did you come to owe the 2.5 million you said you owe?"

"I'd rather not talk about it."

"Well, in any case, I believe you. Does this mean you want to bail us out?"

"Of course, I have no excuse not to."

Greco chimed in again. "How can you guarantee that? The last two times someone said they would pay me off, they didn't. What makes me think that you'll be any different?"

"I already told Grace this story. I lost my life savings once. A woman named Jeanne l'Argent offered me a chance to invest my money into a construction project. I sold it all for this opportunity, $2 million. Within a week, her house burned down and she was killed. At her funeral, one of the mourners revealed herself to be Jeanne. She had taken a total of 25 million dollars from people who invested in the project. And to make sure we couldn't get it back, she donated it to charity."

"Well, that should be a good thing. Kinda reminds me of Robin Hood." Cole remarked.

"Why are you taking her side?"

"Just 'cause, she's not afraid to do the right thing."

"You think stealing is right?"

"If you're doing it for the greater good, it's right, even when it's not."

"You're not making any sense, Cole."

"You're just crazy, there's no 'Jeanne' in the Confidence Trick."

"Oh... yes, there is. I didn't finish my story. You see, Jeanne's killer left a signed note. The name on the note was 'Sylvie Montaigne'. You heard that name when we drew for groups."

"Yes, I did! But that means..." Cole thought about it for a fraction of a second. "There's someone I can count on in the Finale! That's my only chance!"

"How do you know that Sylvie will make it there?"

"She's made it this far. I was in her group!" Iwatani entered the conversation. No. Everyone's gonna think she's the good guy! "She's the reason I'm in the black! She is a woman to be trusted!"

"No she isn't! You don't get it! She stole millions from me!"

"She stole that money in the name of those less fortunate!"

"She stole that money to spite the rich! She cares nothing for the poor! Nothing!"

"She was screwed over time and again by people with as much money as you! Whether or not you had a hand in her brother's death, we'll probably never know. But she has a vendetta against the rich. I think what she's trying to do is make sure that whoever's behind this whole Confidence Trick thing won't be able to do it again. What better way to do that than pull a Jesus and take on the sin of the world?" Once Cole finished, it was over. Everyone thought that Montaigne was on their side.

"Ladies and Gentlemen. Round 4 of this game will commence. Please enter your booths. Once all players are in a booth, the order for this round will be revealed."

My only hope to advance to the Finale was to be the last one standing or have the most money at the end. Nothing mattered to me more than winning this game and moving on.

The order for the round was as follows:

1. Gabriele Greco  
>2. Akane D'Antonio Iwatani<br>3. Ashley Cole VII  
>4. Grace Black<br>5. Naomi Godwinson  
>6. Wilma Schilling<br>7. Paul Koenig

The game has become five against two. It dawned on me that two players had to move on to the Finale, no matter what. Some of the players will not express any interest, but I need to guarantee my spot in the final. I was going to move on. I had to!

Greco surveyed B4, 1, already covered by the soldier at C4. Iwatani played next. She surveyed B5, a 2! meaning that there was a soldier in either A6, B6, or C6. There was no way I would get that kill. Still to play: Cole, Black and Godwinson. Unless one of them owned that soldier, I would have no chance. Cole shot at A6, miss. Grace had a chance to get some kills in. She had only two soldiers left and a chance to turn things around. As if losing three soldiers this early in the game wasn't enough bad fortune, another 50-50 shot went against her. A free kill for Godwinson unless that soldier was hers. And it wasn't, it belonged to Cole.

What struck me was that everyone forgot about the AX-CZ square. The odds of a hit were 2 in 8. Here, I face a crapshoot. If I take the gamble, it'll be 1 in 4, but this opportunity could be gone by my next turn.

Now, I'm getting desperate. Everything is against us. All of these thoughts running through my head. How did I get this far? How did I get this far? If we lose, we'll stay in the black, but I will fail in my one goal in the Confidence Trick unless I can get a place from someone else. God, I have no choice but to take the shot. CY! Hit! Finally! After so much has gone wrong, something goes right! A message shows up on the screen announcing that Greco owes me a million, but that doesn't matter, what matters is that I'm one step closer to being the last one standing. Even if I fall short, if I get enough kills, I could have the highest score and take the second spot in the Finale. It may be too early to try to estimate how well I'll have to do, but something in the realm of five or six kills isn't impossible.

The round ends with Koenig surveying B6. no new information.

The game progresses with its ups and downs.

**Round 5 order:** Schilling, Cole, Iwatani, Koenig, Godwinson, Greco, Black.

I survey at B7, nothing new. Cole surveys at B8, a 1 in 3 comes up, giving Iwatani, Koenig and Godwinson a shot. Iwatani surveys at C8, outing her as the owner of the soldier that came up at A9-C9. She gets a 2, a 2 in 5 chance. D7, D8, D9, C9 and B9. This intersects with A9, B9 and C9. Everyone left to play has a crack at a kill and the game has started once again. Koenig tries C9 and misses.

2 in 4 now, Godwinson's turn. She tries B9 and misses. This leaves Greco with a certain kill at A9. and then a 2 in 3 for Grace at D7-D9. Greco scores and then Grace tries a shot at D7, another score against Godwinson.

**Standings after Round 5:**

Paul Koenig: 5 soldiers left, $500,000  
>Naomi Godwinson: 4 soldiers left, $2,083,333<br>Gabriele Greco: 4 soldiers left, $1,666,667  
>Wilma Schilling: 4 soldiers left, $1,083,333<br>Akane D'Antonio-Iwatani: 3 soldiers left, -$916,667  
>Ashley Cole VII: 3 soldiers left, -$1,916,667<br>Grace Black: 2 soldiers left, -$2,500,000

Things are starting to turn for me as well as Grace. We each scored a kill that round. They want this game to be over so they can go home. Hell, they've already told each other how much they have or owe, and set a goal for how much they want to gain. But I doubt that any of them want to actually move on to the Finale. They need the money, but they don't need to move on. I don't need the money, but I want that place in the Finale. Why did I get frustrated over early game mishaps? I can breathe a bit more easily, it's 5 against 2, but what does it matter? I'm almost guaranteed a spot in the Finale.

**Round 6 order:** Godwinson, Cole, Koenig, Iwatani, Schilling, Black, Greco.

Ah, yes. Grace and I play back to back this round. But there's four ahead of us. There's still the 1 in 2 left from the last round. But that's a tossup between Godwinson and Cole, and maybe Koenig if one of those two own that soldier. But that kill is out of reach to us. Godwinson gets a kill and it turns out to be Grace's soldier. My heart skips a beat, but Grace being on one soldier is no problem to me. It's Cole's turn and he has a 1 in 7 at the top right, a 1 in 8 in the bottom right, and a 1 in 5 toward the lower left. Not surprisingly, he goes for the 1 in 5 shot between H1, H2, H3, I1, and I3. He takes a chance on H3. It doesn't pan out.

Koenig's turn. He has the 1 in 4 that Cole left him. He doesn't take it, instead opening up E3, revealing a 2. With a kill on D4 and E2, D2 and D3 all confirmed vacant, this leaves another 1 in 4. Iwatani is the next to play. She takes her chance on H1, another miss.

From their moves this game, I can conclude that they have three goals. 1) Take us out as quickly as they can. 2) End the game as quickly as they can. 3) Deny to us any kills we can get. That last goal has worked out in their favour. So far, they have gained $2.083 million from kills scored against us or failed guesses. And they can win another half million if Grace is taken out first. The 10 million I won has put a target on our backs. If we win, we can pay off the other players and move on to the Finale. If we lose, we can pay off the other players, but while there's still a good chance for us to move on, there's no guarantee, unless maybe, we can buy our places in the Finale. There's nothing for them to gain from blocking our entry. No matter how much they want for those places, if I don't accept their offer, then one or two of them will have to progress to the Finale with debt and possibly face l'Argent and her friend and it isn't guaranteed that she'll be as much of a Robin Hood as everyone makes her out to be, even if she is, there will always be people willing to make a quick buck even if it means forever changing people's lives for the worst.

It's my turn. I have a 1 in 3 at H2, I1 and I3. If I can just get a kill... I1! Another hit! Two in three rounds! What luck! And I'm even tied for first! I'm practically jumping right now! But I have to calm myself because they still have 17 soldiers while we have only 5. It's Grace's turn, with no favourable chances and being late in the order, she opens up at E2.

2. That opens up a 2 in 3 chance for Greco at F1, F2 and F3. He decides to shoot at F3. And misses. That ends the round leaving two sure kills at F1 and F2. It's a lottery for Pete's sake! Two guaranteed kills for the first two to play in the next round.

**Author's note: Finally, I get this chapter done. I haven't found the time to write recently. This update took 3 weeks and it'll only get worse with finals coming in 2 weeks. But after that, Winter Break lasts from December 22 to January 26! A whole month to get this game finished so we can move on to the Finale! To anyone still reading this story, I'm sorry it's so long and badly written in some parts, but I thank you for reading up to this point. This fic is not dead and it won't die until I tell it to die! Until next time! **


	53. End of Semifinal

**Standings after Round 6:**

Naomi Godwinson: 4 soldiers left, $2,333,333  
>Gabriele Greco: 4 soldiers left, $1,333,333<br>Wilma Schilling: 4 soldiers left, $1,333,333  
>Paul Koenig: 4 soldiers left, $750,000<br>Akane D'Antonio-Iwatani: 3 soldiers left, -$1,250,000  
>Ashley Cole VII: 2 soldiers left, -$2,250,000<br>Grace Black: 1 soldier left, -$2,250,000

The round has just ended and we exit the booths for a five minute break. I look at the board. The F1 and F2 squares stare right back at me. Two guaranteed kills right there. I know that neither of those soldiers behind those squares are mine. Grace has only one soldier left, I have four and the others combine for 17. A question pops into my head. What will happen when a player loses her last soldier? Aside from losing $100,000 to each other player and being eliminated from the game, it was never mentioned whether that player would have to leave. With everyone except me and Grace talking small talk, I ask the question.

"Excuse me, I have a question."

"What would you like to ask? Please note that the game clock has not been paused."

"Players who are eliminated from the game will have to pay $100,000 to everyone else still in. Will such players have to leave the premises?"

The croupier responds. "Players who are eliminated may remain in the game venue. However, once they elect to leave, they will be sequestered in another room to watch the rest of the game. They will only have access to the current gamestate. They will not see any interaction between the remaining players. Does this answer your question?"

"Yes, it does." I respond.

"Then we will return to the game." Grace could stay in the game for help. I've been acting alone up to Part 4. Only in the Quarterfinal, which took place not even 12 hours ago, and here did I actually rely on someone else. I wanted to trust others, but that became difficult ever since l'Argent came into my life. I started off on a path of betrayal, but surprisingly, nothing bad had come of it. My ultimate goal is to ruin l'Argent, but that might also be her goal. She is the only player who isn't out to clear her debts. I've won 10 million dollars, she's lost over 5 million, yet she has in some way won every game in the Confidence Trick at her own expense. Does she have nothing to live for?

If a thousand each win a million from a single player, then a thousand people will win a million with that one loser owing a _billion _dollars. Someone like her can earn a billion in her lifetime, but the people to whom she owes money can only collect from her and no one else. She has nothing to live for and can kill herself to spite us. That means the CT would be stuck. While I'm playing to win, she's playing to lose. The CT can't win with her in the game.

!

Is that her goal!? To lose? If that really is her goal, then beating her won't do any justice. If I beat her, then I've failed. If she beats me, then I've failed. Goddamnit! What can I do!? How do I beat her?!

Then, I think about a man to whom Sylvie had grown attached. Yes, Dana Andrews. How does he do it? How does he establish trust in a game where everyone's in it for themselves? How does he ingrain the cooperative attitude into the minds of the other players? How have neither of us ruined anyone who we didn't want to ruin?

Most of the games in the Confidence Trick are zero-sum, meaning that the CT makes money off of those who quit. The games that aren't zero-sum offer an overall profit to the players, but with chances for the CT to take that money off the table. If everyone works together, then everyone will at worst break even. But there is always the opportunity to win and then leave with only half of the money won in that game. Half of everything is much better than all of nothing.

Dana's goal is for everyone to break even and exit the Confidence Trick owing nothing, Sylvie's goal is to take on as much debt as possible. If she does manage to take about 10 million from the CT, that's only 10 million. There's something wrong with her if she thinks she can end the Confidence Trick by taking on some astronomical debt.

"Ladies and Gentlemen. Round 7 of this game will commence. Please enter your booths. Once all players are in a booth, the order for this round will be revealed."

We enter our booths and my mind shifts back to the gamestate. The end of Round 6 left two guaranteed kills on the table. The only other opportunities were a 1 in 8 and a 1 in 7, still untouched from the start of the game. The first two to play will score in this round.

The order of play for the round flashes onto the screen.

1. Naomi Godwinson  
>2. Gabriele Greco<br>3. Grace Black  
>4. Ashley Cole VII<br>5. Wilma Schilling  
>6. Paul Koenig<br>7. Akane D'Antonio-Iwatani

This was another chance for us to turn the game in our favour. But there's still a chance. If one of those two soldiers is controlled by Godwinson or Greco, then the other might not have a target and Grace will score. Godwinson's shot... as expected, a hit. She had scored on Greco, whose turn was up next. I have to hope that both of those soldiers are his, if that isn't the case, then he'll score. Greco's result was announced.

A hit against Akane D'Antonio Iwatani. There go the two free kills. It's Grace's turn and there are no good chances to score. She shoots at F4 and finds a 2 in 5. There are four players to play this round. Cole, myself, Koenig and Iwatani. The best chance I have here is 50-50 assuming Cole misses. Rather than take the chance, he decides to survey J3, another mistake, as a 1 in 2 opened up. Had he taken the chance and missed, a 40% would have become a 50%. Instead, this happened and well, another 50% opened up. It was my chance to capitalise on the opportunity. 50% is the best odds I can get here apparently. H4 or I4. Agonising over the choice won't do anything so I take a shot at H4. It turns out to score and take out Godwinson's second soldier.

Now only Koenig and Iwatani are left to play. There's still the 40% at E5, F5, G3, G4 and G5. By the end of the round, this could very well turn into a 67%. If this were the case, then the top three in the order would have a huge opportunity. Koenig's turn. She shoots at E5. Result: a hit against Cole. Cole is down to only one soldier. But I don't know whether he's going to panic now that he at this point. I intend to prove that I can be trusted. Everyone knows about l'Argent, but they don't know about me.

Iwatani's turn comes up and she instead surveys at H2, revealing a 1 in 3 among G1, G2, and G3. An intersection. I have not played minesweeper enough to calculate the chance of G3 having a soldier. I could enumerate the possibilities in five minutes. But I have to convince them that I will pay them off, whoever happens to win. We exit the booths and I make my case.

**- End of Round 7-**

"I know how much you consider Sylvie Montaigne as a Robin Hood. She has won only to give back all of the money she won and then some. As you may know, I still have 10 million dollars that I won and I am perfectly willing to pay your debts if you would just let me through to the finale."

Four of them expressed no objection the last time I asked this question, but Greco was the reason the conversation turned to l'Argent. I just need to convince Gabriele.

"What can you do to get me to trust you, Schilling?" Greco asked. "You haven't done enough to convince me that you're different from all the others who said they would pay me off and didn't."

Naomi interrupted. "You might not trust her, but you trust Sylvie. And we trust Sylvie. I do, Akane does, Ashley does, and Paul does. You owe about 2.5 million. You've won 1.3 million and I've won a fair amount, enough to pay you off. Let's look at how much each of us owes."

She goes over everyone's debts and current scores. (except mine and Grace's, this is more about them than it is about me)

Iwatani: -2.250 million, no prior debt  
>Godwinson: +2.333 million, 819k surplus<br>Greco: +1.333 million, 2.5M prior debt  
>Koenig: +1.750 million, 312.5k prior debt<br>Cole: -3.250 million, 856k prior debt

" If you add up all of those numbers, you would get a total of about 2.8 million in prior debts and 830,000 in losses, a debt of 3.6 million."

"Yeah, we need the money that Schilling says she has, but she might not have it."

Cole chimed in. "I'd be perfectly willing to take a hit for..."

"No one needs to take a hit! I have more than enough money to pay off all of you. I do have the money, I swear! You just need to believe me! None of you really want to go on to the Finale! Are you trying to make me look like the bad guy here?!" Any words that anyone was about to say were silenced then and there. It was as if they waited for me to say what I had to say. With teary eyes, I tried once again to convince the others that I wasn't out to ruin them. "I never wanted to hurt anyone else in any of the games I've played. I only wanted to get to Sylvie. I never meant to hurt anyone else. Ten million dollars and a target on my back, that's all I entered this game with. I got lucky and drew the same group as the closest friend I made in the Confidence Trick. Though we didn't do much to look out for each other here, she didn't panic when she was whittled down to one soldier. There are only two spots in the Finale. I want one of them."

Grace entered the conversation. "And so do I. Does anyone else want to go on to the Finale." Once again, absolute silence. "So what reason do you have to not trust her, Gabe? Wilma is promising you, all of you, enough money to leave the Confidence Trick. Even if she doesn't, I know I'm not the only one willing to give something up just so you can pay the $2.5 million you came here owing. And Ashley, you didn't panic when you were down to one soldier and down over 3 million."

"Yes, and I still trust Wilma to pay me off. If Sylvie can take a hit, then so can I."

"So, Gabe, is there anything about Wilma that you still don't trust?"

Everything was in our favour. We've proven that we can sacrifice individual gain just as easily as anyone else. There was no reason for Gabriele to continue to oppose us. I had the money, and only needed the spot in the Finale, they had the numbers, two of them could easily get to the Finale, but nobody was willing to go.

"Ladies and Gentlemen. Round 8 of this game will commence. Please enter your booths. Once all players are in a booth, the order for this round will be revealed." And thus the game progressed. From Round 8 to Round 9, to Round 10. What happened after this point didn't matter at all now that I had the trust of all of the other players. They would get enough money to exit the Confidence Trick safely, and Grace and I would get to play in the Finale against l'Argent.

On Round 11, it came to our attention that we knew only the locations of our own soldiers. To speed things along, we decided it best to reveal the locations of all of our soldiers to save time needlessly guessing. Round 12 went by, then Round 13. As the game went on, some of us were eliminated. Eventually, the game ended in Round 14 on Akane killing Grace's last soldier and becoming the sole survivor for the game, winning a spot in the Finale. The other spot would be decided on money.

"Ladies and gentlemen, this game is now over. We will now display the ranking for this game. As a reminder, all players will be ranked with the player with the most profit ranking highest. Except for Mrs. Akane D'Antonio-Iwatani, who is the last player standing in the game, she will be ranked first. Without further ado, the final results table!"

1st place: Akane D'Antonio-Iwatani, 1 soldier remaining, $350,000 profit  
>2nd place: Wilma Schilling, $1,133,333 profit<br>3rd place: Gabriele Greco, $833,333 profit  
>4th place: Naomi Godwinson, $433,333 profit<br>5th place: Grace Black, $150,000 profit  
>6th place: Paul Koenig, $750,000 loss<br>7th place: Ashley Cole VII, $2,150,000 loss

"Now we have come to the hard part. The top two players who wish to advance to the Finale will gain those places. We will offer a place to each player in order of their placement until two players have accepted the invitation to participate. Mrs. Iwatani, since you placed first in this game, you will have first priority. Would you like to play in the Finale?"

"No, I have decided not to play in the Finale."

"Are you sure? Have you thought about this decision?"

"Yes, I have, I am done with the Confidence Trick. I've found a way out."

"Then we will go to Ms. Schilling. Have you made a decision?"

"Yes, and yes, I will go on to the Finale. I still have a score to settle."

"Are you..."

"Yes, I am sure."

"Okay, then. We will now offer a place to our third place player. Mr. Greco, have you made your decision?"

"I have decided... not to advance to the Finale, my decision is final."

"The place will now go to our fourth-placed player, Miss Naomi Godwinson. Miss Godwinson, have you made your decision?"

"Yes, my answer is no." Naomi announced. "And that is final."

"Very well then. Since you have announced your decision as final, we will move on to our fifth placed player. Miss Black, have you made your decision."

"Yes! I have decided to take the second place in the Finale. I am sure, so let's go and check out already!" Grace wanted this to be over already. Who didn't? After two hard played games lasting from 12:15 to about 20:50, we all wanted to go home.

**Checkout - 20:53  
><strong>**April 2**

"Once again, Ms. Schilling, you were in the first section to finish. I have no idea how you convinced the others you would pay them off."

"It's simple, because I am. I never wanted to hurt anyone else, I'm just after l'Argent."

"Well, I never expected you to be anything other than one of those mean girls in high school."

"You can't win these games by yourself. By my count, there has been only been one game that has been completely one-on-one. You have to make friends in the Confidence Trick, that cannot be avoided. I did not come here to meet just my own goals, but to meet those of everyone who was swindled by Jeanne l'Argent."

We came out of the Semifinal with the following debts:

Gabriele: owes $1.84 million

Paul: owes $1.0775 million

Ashley: owes $3.021 million

This totaled to $5,938,500. I came out with $11,469,283.33. Even though others insisted that they pitch in to pay off the men, I took almost 6 million dollars out of my own pocket to liberate the thee men from the Confidence Trick. However, Akane, Grace and Naomi still had money. In the end, the other six players declined my offer to share my remaining 5.5 million ($5,530,783.33). Rather, Akane and Naomi offered to give their money to my self and Grace, knowing that we might need it in the Finale. I ended up letting Grace have all of the offered money, giving her a total of 2.28 million ($2,281,116.67) entering the Finale.

But, the time came for us to split up and return home. Naomi, Ashley, Paul, Akane and Gabriele wished us luck in the Finale three weeks from today before leaving. Grace and I stayed to spend a few more minutes together before the Finale.

"So, this will be our last game."

"Yep, and we'll win. We'll make her pay. We've made it, Wilma."

"Good luck, Grace."

"I won't need it."

"Neither will I." The time has finally come for us to part ways until the Finale. Three weeks from now, we will defeat Jeanne l'Argent. The Confidence Trick will end in her failure.

**Author's note: aaaahhh... Finally, I get that arc out of the way. Final exams are done, freeing up more time for this fic. I so wanted this arc to end and not stretch out like Part Three did. Updates will be more frequent (about every 1-2 weeks instead of 3). Happy new year, everyone! Until next time, read and review! **

**I get favourites and all that good stuff, but the last comment I got for any of my stories was dated September 27th, 94 days before this update. In that time, I've gotten 6 favourites, uploaded 2 one-shots, had my most popular story removed by admins, gotten 3 new story follows, updated this story with 3 (now 4) new chapters totaling 9473 words. Can someone give me a review for any of my stories? I know there are people reading and there are people who like my work, but I would like for people to actually comment on it, even if it's just a small comment. **

**Anyways, the Grand Finale is coming up soon. 10 games down, 10 people left. Top prize: 20 million dollars. Buy-in: 4 million dollars. No second chances, the road ends here. **


	54. Headed Home

**21:00  
><strong>**April 2  
><strong>**Grace Black**

Once again, the game had finished. We were through to the Grand Finale. Going in, I hated Wilma with a passion. First, I see her in Part 3, which she singlehandedly dominated. I thought she just wanted to make people suffer. I saw her again in Part 5, when once again, she asserted her authority in the game. She almost quit after that game, but wanted beat Sylvie once and for all and stayed in the game. We met again in the Quarterfinal where I learned that she was no different that I was, having been swindled out of everything she had. She wanted nothing more than to defeat Sylvie Montaigne, formerly Jeanne l'Argent. Luck was on our side once again when we were drawn into the same group for the Semifinal. By this point, people had heard the tale of Robin Hood, I mean Sylvie Montaigne. Nobody could believe anything bad that was said about her. But we knew that the Confidence Trick had games of cooperation as well as competition. Wilma's money erased any chance that any of the seven of us would betray another. So here I am on my way home, waiting for the Grand Finale three weeks from now. This is what she has waited almost 32 months for.

"You came in here just for the money. You didn't care about anything other than winning. And yet you and Schilling somehow became quick friends. Granted, you two do share the fact that each of you had lost everything once, but that was just about the only thing that wasn't going against your eventual alliance."

"It may have been the only thing, but sometimes, that's the only thing that matters. When we found about our pasts, Wilma gave me a reason to continue in the Confidence Trick and we both made it to this Finale."

"So, you've made friends with your previous worst enemy."

"There's always a chance at anything. But chance won't play a role in the Grand Finale."

**21:00  
><strong>**April 2  
><strong>**Wilma Schilling**

The Confidence Trick was nearing its end. Grace and I made it through to the Finale. I have a chance to beat l'Argent into the ground. Never once did I think I would be on the same side as Grace. After all, I had played against her twice already. But she had lost it all once and when we learned of each other's backgounds, we immediately came to an understanding. Now, we were headed home after playing two more of the Confidence Trick's games.

"What are your thoughts on meeting a new friend?"

"Honestly, I thought Grace and I would always be enemies. I still couldn't completely trust her, but I had the money to test her. After the Quarterfinal, I gave her $270,000. She had the perfect opportunity to jump ship. And against my expectations, she didn't. Not because she couldn't back out of the Semifinal, it was almost as if I never gave her the money. She moved forward because of something she believed in. After the Semifinal, she had $400,000. She could have chosen not to advance to the Finale and keep that money. But she chose on her own free will to advance to the Finale. I gave her over $1.5 million to use in the Finale and she accepted it only because we had no idea about the nature of the game that would be played. "

"Does this mean you can call her a friend?"

"Yes. She's the first person I can trust with ease in a long time."

Our discussion of the days events goes on for a couple of hours. Those games took a lot out of me, no doubt they took a lot out of everyone. That's why they gave us 3 weeks of rest. They want us to play our hearts out in this Finale. It's a 32 hour drive both ways and I need some sleep. For the first time in over two and a half years, I can sleep well. I fell asleep knowing that I had made a friend from an enemy.

**07:30  
><strong>**April 3  
><strong>**Sylvie Montaigne**

I awaken and find myself still far from home. I ask Princeton for the time and he checks his watch. "7:30, we're passing through Oklahoma City. If you're wondering, I'm pulling over at Springfield, Missouri to make way for another driver. No one can drive 38 straight hours. I see you still haven't thought of a way to end the Confidence Trick."

"No, I haven't. I'm still thinking. But I just don't know what this last game will be about. I won't know until I get the invitation. My thinking is pointless, but I have nothing else to do."

The power of trust has put me and Dana through to the Grand Finale. Honestly, I think we just got lucky. None of the players in our group had any debt. A welcome surprise just after figuring that my plan to take on millions in debt would fail. The only way to end the Confidence Trick now is to end any reason to organise these games in the first place. But what do they have to gain from the Confidence Trick? And I am certain that Schilling advanced to the Finale, so I'll have to deal with her. Still, Dana has a way of uniting all of the players. When he's in a game of competition, it will become a game of cooperation. When I first met him, I could have sworn that he was my brother Morgan. Ever since Morgan died, I was afraid to put my trust in others, I did everything on my own. As soon as I left prison, I learned about the Confidence Trick. I had nothing to gain, but I wanted to know who was behind it all. And so, I made it all the way to the 'Grand Finale'. There will be nothing to regret after this last game, I will win.

The CT's decision to show the $20 million top prize served to take all of the attention of the players and pit them against one another. Most of us knew that we weren't willing to go to the Finale if it meant risking our lives as we knew them, so the $20 million was out of sight and out of mind, and the players would turn their attention towards getting out of debt, which was very easy in the Quarterfinal, which offered an extra $1 million to each player, Even in sections where the maximum 10 million profit was not won, most games ended with a total profit of at least $6-7 million each. This served to clear as much debt as possible in time for the Semifinal, yet another zero-sum game. With so much debt cleared in the Quarterfinal, for most of the players, it felt exactly like Part One. But that changed nothing about the fact that we had already been through the Confidence Trick and wanted out.

Exactly two players from each group would go through to the Finale, no matter how many were actually willing to go. And now the ten players that went through are each one step away from $20 million. With no games after this, there will be no regrets. But zero-sum or not, this is a huge cash prize we're looking at. There's no doubt that some people will join teams to split the $20 million, meaning that not all of us will get a cut, thus someone will lose. There is no reason for every single player to be on the same team. Yes, trust can do so many things, Dana. But trust can _only _do so many things.

**13:00  
><strong>**April 4  
><strong>**Dana Andrews**

After a 38-hour drive, the driver and I both step out of the van, having arrived at the front door to my apartment.

"Here you are, Mr. Andrews." The driver hands me the black card that I know can only mean one thing.

**Confidence Trick Grand Finale**

_Congratulations on reaching this stage of the Confidence Trick. You are one step away from winning it all. The Grand Finale of the Confidence Trick will be held on April 23 around noon in Kansas City, Kansas. The trip will take no more than four hours by private jet. We will come to pick you up at 07:00. Good luck. _

"Thanks."

"Nineteen days from now, the Confidence Trick will end." The driver takes his seat in the car and drives off, leaving me in front of my apartment. Nineteen days. The Grand Finale. $20 million. In every single game, it was possible for everyone to at least break even. I know that this game will be no different. This is my last chance to clear any debts that any of the other players might have. But what worries me is that Schilling made it to the Finale along with us. Schilling and Sylvie have been at each other since they first met in Part Three. Not only will they not work with one another, they are the two most influential players in the Confidence Trick. Perhaps I'll have to do what I did in the Intermission and force a break-even on everyone. This is the last game, meaning any players in debt will have to pay that off somehow, with no further chances to cancel that debt through the Confidence Trick.

All I can do is hope that just one of them can find the strength to forgive, just one is enough.


	55. The Grand Finale Begins!

**05:45  
>Sylvie Montaigne<br>April 23**

It's been 11 weeks since I was released from prison and the Confidence Trick began. Today is April 23rd, 2022, the last day of the Confidence Trick. Before the CT took me to the venue for the next game, I would pull out another game to play. Part of the reason was to take my mind off everything after Morgan hanged himself. Part of the reason was to prepare myself for the upcoming game. Part of the reason was to vent my anger. I had many reasons to pull out a deck of cards or a game board a couple of hours before I had to leave. This is the last time I'm doing this. What game should I play?

I pull a set of dice from the shelf. I think I'll play some yahtzee (**Author's Note: Yahtzee is owned by Hasbro, nobody sue me.**). I take out some paper and draw up a scoresheet. Ones through sixes... 3 of a kind... 4 of a kind... Full house... Small straight... Large straight... Yahtzee.. and Chance. The game lasts the usual 13 turns. The dice roll in my favor in this first game. An upper section of 66 gives me the 35 point bonus. From the lower section, I score Full house, both straights and Yahtzee. Chance scored 18, 3 of a kind scored 21, and 4 of a kind scored 16. Upper section: 101, Lower section: 200. That adds up to 301 out of 375. I play a few more games, a wide range of scores come up. 290, 219, 252, 178, 156, 184, 181, 212, and 198. This game is quick, taking about five minutes for someone who knows the rules. By the time I finish my tenth game, it's only 6:35, 25 minutes before the CT picks me up for the last time, I walk outside to the front porch and wait with nothing to do except think about the events of the last two and a half months.

**07:00  
><strong>**April 23  
><strong>**Dana Andrews**

"Mr. Andrews, we are here." I leave the safety of my apartment one last time for the Confidence Trick. I take my seat in the car and we drive off.

"We will travel to BWI Airport where you will ride a private jet to Kansas City. You will arrive at approximately 11:45. The game will start promptly at 13:00." I notice that the invite said that the game would start at 12:00 instead of 13:00, I figure that this _is_ the Confidence Trick. Anything can happen. Part Five started on a plane, Part Two was held over two days, Part Four was three games in one, the last two games were held on the same day. What could be in store for us today? For what did they set that hour aside? But that extra hour doesn't change the fact that this will be the last game, any players in debt at the end of it all will stay in debt. Sylvie still owes almost 5 million dollars, she'll have to win that much in one game. But the more money that can be won, the more that can be lost, and the deeper she could fall. But she doesn't care at all, she just wants to know who was behind the Confidence Trick all along. If we win, she'll finally know the answers to her questions. My first goal is for everyone to escape this game debt free, I want this before anything else. If things work out, then my second goal is for either me or Sylvie to win. I've wondered why the CT started, but in the two and a half months since the Confidence Trick began, my only conlcusion is that Sylvie and Schilling have something to do with it. It would be futile to answer any questions that this raises. I've asked myself the same question about ten thousand times. No answers. It's like no one is there to hear me. None of the other players know. It's just us and a huge cash prize at the end of this game. Win and be set for life, lose and drown in debt.

**11:45  
><strong>**Sylvie Montaigne**

As I enter the venue, I see that Black and Schilling are among the eight others here. But something about them is off. They seem to behave as though they are actually friends. After what we've been through, there's just no way that Black and Schilling can just set aside their differences.

"Welcome, Ms. l'Argent." l'Argent?! Does Black know about what happened? Schilling would never tell someone like her, she just wouldn't! Could Black and Schilling actually be friends? I keep calm long enough to ask them one of the questions I have.

"Since when did you two become friends?"

"Since the end of the Quarterfinal, when Grace told me about the day she lost it all. You were there when _I_ lost it all. I don't feel comfortable explaining this until Andrews gets here. Oh, would you look at that, just in time." Dana enters the scene, wondering what Schilling is talking about.

"Hey, Sylvie." Dana turns and finds Schilling and Black standing within an arm's distance, something that he thought would never happen. "Huh..."

"Ah, Mr. Andrews, you're here."

"Huh... Grace, since when did you become such close friends with Schilling."

"Oh, you know, Wilma had lost it all once. When she told me about that day, we decided to work together."

"That's great! So the four of us can come together!"

"Eh... not so fast, Dana."

"..."

"You didn't let me finish. Sylvie is the reason that Wilma lost everything." Dana lets her continue. "Sylvie masqueraded as an investor named Jeanne l'Argent and offered to invest Wilma's life savings into a construction project. Problem is that Jeanne died in a fire with all of the money invested in the project. Or so Wilma thought. At l'Argent's funeral, a woman came forward and said that she was l'Argent. She had faked her death and donated the money to charity so she didn't have to give it back." That's why she was in prison."

"Sylvie, is this true?" Dana asked, only able to say that much.

"Yes. Yes, it is."

**Dana Andrews**

So, I think I have all the pieces to the puzzle. Sylvie lost her brother to unpayable debts. She found the people behind the scheme and offered to invest their money. She faked her death and donated the money to charity so they couldn't get it back. While she did things that weren't right, she did them because she thought she had no choice. From Part Three, I know that Wilma Schilling had a hand in Morgan's death. But this is the Grand Finale, meaning that any players in debt at the end of the game will stay in debt. It has never been more important for us to work as a single team.

The clock strikes noon and we are directed into the venue. There is a ten sided building in the room. We look around the outside and find that all ten sides are identical, each with one door. The doors are all locked.

"We welcome all of you to the Confidence Trick Grand Finale. It must have taken a lot to get this far. My name is Denisov. Before we start the game, we have one hour. We will start distributing the game materials." A number of individuals distribute checkbooks to the players. This seems very familiar but I wait until I receive mine to confirm that this is like in the Intermission.

"Here you are, Mr. Andrews." I read the front cover of the checkbook. It says _"Property of: __**Dana Andrews**__"_. So far, everything's the same. I look inside the checkbook and the similarity ends there, each check is divided into two halves, probably to note anything that should change hands.

"We will explain how to use these in a moment. Right now, we will display a list of all players and any debt that they have to the Confidence Trick." A list of players appears with pictures to accompany each name.

_**Players In Debt (3)**_

Sylvie Montaigne: $4,977,500  
>William Kawahara: $1,664,250<br>Daniele l'Aquila: $450,000

_**Players Not In Debt (7)**_

Grace Black  
>Wilma Schilling<br>Dana Andrews  
>Luke Milton Jr.<br>Peter Eagleden  
>Teruaki Hongou<br>Soujirou Ijima-Schlossmacher

"The top prize as we have shown three weeks ago is $20 million. Only, $4 million times 10 players equals $40 million." Right on cue, two locked safes are carted into the room. The safes are opened, each revealing four square shelves containing what I think is $5 million each. But why would the money be arranged like that?

"We will now explain the rules for this Grand Finale. The Holy Trinity, 3-on-3, three leaf clovers, the Bermuda Triangle, the three colors visible to the human eye. These all come in threes and that what this game will be about. First off, you will be able to share the prize with up to three others. With that, we will announce the game which you will play today... Three by Three!"

Denisov continued. "I assume that some of you have heard of a game called Nim. A game in which you have a pile of objects and you take a number between one and three. The player who takes the last object wins. Here, since we have more than two players, the player who takes the last object loses. Let me show you the full rules."

-The 10 players are seated at a table. Each of them has four buttons in front of them numbered 0, 1, 2, and 3.  
>-At the center of the table and behind each set of buttons, you can see target number. This number starts at 72 and decreases by 3 each round, down to a theoretical minimum of 21. You can also see the current count.<br>-The time limit per move is 3 minutes. Any player failing to play in that time will receive a warning. A second warning will cost the player a life and end the round.  
>-Each player starts with two lives. A player losing both lives is eliminated and must leave the game, she may still however, communicate and bargain with other eliminated players.<br>-Each round, the count begins at zero, a player may press a single button and add that number to the current count. The player may use not use the same number that the last player used, nor may she use the same number twice in a row. These numbers will light up red. The number a player last used will light up yellow. All other numbers will light up white  
>-If a player causes the count to exceed the target number, then the player loses a life. The round ends and there will be a 5 minute break.<br>-The order of play and seating arrangement are determined at random at the start of every round.  
>-The game goes on until two players remain, these players will both win.<p>

Two winners. 2 x 20 = 10 x 4.

"A few things about how the money will be distributed." Another CT official distributes what appear to be vouchers. Each of us gets three of these, each with out name on them. Each voucher bears the name of its original bearer and is worth $5 million. "_This note is redeemable for five million dollars if its original bearer, __**Dana Andrews**__, wins the game._"

"The contracts you have already received work like they did in the Intermission. Except that they can only be used to buy and sell the vouchers you have just received. Each of you has just received three vouchers bearing your name. The winners will each receive $5 million and all vouchers bearing the name of either of the winners will be worth $5 million each. Theoretically, one of you could walk out of here with $35 million! As most of the games in the Confidence Trick are, this game is zero-sum, meaning that every player will pay us four million dollars each at the game's conclusion. But first things first, in order for all of you to get a feel for the game, we will hold a practice session. We will need five volunteers to come forward to play this game." Sylvie, Grace, Schilling and I immediately come to the front. Another man walks to the front with us. From his picture, I can tell that he is Peter Eagleden.

"We will now direct you all into the theater." Each of us went through one of the doors in the theater and took a seat. There were four buttons numbered 0, 1, 2, and 3. Behind the buttons was a small display reading 0/30. I assume they set the target to 30 for this practice round.

"For this practice session, we will play three rounds. The target numbers for each round will be 30, then 27, and then 24. In the actual game, the order of play will be randomised. However, for this practice session you are free to select someone arbitrarily to start."

"Then, I guess it'll be me." Eagleden announces. Following him, it'll be Grace, then Sylvie, then me, and then Schilling before going back to Eagleden. He presses the 3 button and we all see "3/30". Grace follows up with a 2, for a total of 5. Sylvie responds with a 3 and I play a 2. 10/30. The pattern of 3's and 2's continues with Schilling playing a 3. Since there is an odd number of players, Eagleden can continue the pattern with a 2. 15/30.

Grace plays a 3 for a total of 18 which Sylvie brings to 20. I can play a 0, 1, or 3. The sum of the next four numbers that can be played can be anywhere between 2 (0, 1, 0, 1) and 10 (2, 3, 2, 3). It's impossible to tell what numbers will come up next. By the time my turn comes up again, the total could be anything between 22 and 33. You would have to rely on luck if you want to win by yourself, hoping that you'll have a way out if it ever comes back to you. I end up doing something different and playing 1, bringing the total to 21.

Now, it's Schilling's turn. She plays a 2 and brings the total to 23.

Eagleden can play a 0, 1, or 3. The next four for him can add up to something between 2 and 10 as before. If he plays 0, and the next four plays add to 7, then he loses. If his play and the next three add up to 7 and Schilling's next play is 0, then Eagleden loses. He plays 3. It's 26/30 with Grace to play. She can play a 0, 1, or 2. If she plays 2, then that brings the count to 2 fewer than the target. The next player is 100% safe. The second player following is also 100% safe unless he 0'd in his last turn _and _the next player played 2 to bring the count equal to the target. The only way for Grace to lose if she plays 2 is if the next four plays go 1, 0, 1, 0 for a total of 30. Only the first player following Grace can safely deviate from the pattern of 1s and 0s. If nobody deviates, then Grace loses. Playing a 2 means that either Grace or Schilling will lose.

If she plays 1, then that would leave 3 less than the target. Sylvie could play 3 and I could play 0 to take out Schilling. 1 is out of the question.

If she plays 0, that would leave 4 less than the target. Sylvie and I could play 1 and 3 respectively, but Schilling would have a way out with a 0 and Eagleden would lose. Her best option therefore is to play 0. She does so and leaves Sylvie to play 1 and me to play 3, raising the count to 30/30. Schilling has a way out, playing a 0. Now Eagleden can't play 0 to save himself and loses.

"The first of three practice rounds has ended. Peter Eagleden has been eliminated. In the actual game, we would reseat the remaining players randomly. However, we will not do that in this practice session. The target number is 27. Aside from this, this round will work just like the last."

Just playing the first round of the practice session, I realise that in order to ensure your survival, you need a team. I also learned that the endgame can be very difficult if you're trying to secure your teammates' safety. It's two against two.

Two on two means that the two sides can effectively choose any number between 1 and 5.

"I'll start." Grace announces as her hand slams the 3 button. 3/27. She has won this round. The two sides can only pick numbers between 1 and 5. The count is 24 less than the target. Since 24 is a multiple of 6, then she can force a multiple of 6 every turn until the count reaches 27.

24, XX, 18, XX, 12, XX, 6, X, 0, defeat. We've lost this round. Sylvie and I play 2 and 1 respectively. Schilling and Grace counter with a 3 and 0. 9/27. Sylvie and I try a 3-2 only for it to be shot down by a 0-1. 15/27. 2-3 followed by 1-0 and 1-0 followed by 3-2 bring the count to 27/27 with Sylvie to play. She played a 1 last and the last play was 2. She has to make a choice. Will I lose or will she lose. Regardless, Schilling and Grace make up two of the three players and have total control of the game.

The second practice round ends and the third begins with a target of 24. I start and open with 3 and am met with a 2-3. 8/24. My second move is a 2 and they reply with 3-1, 14/24. 3, then 1-2. 20/24. 4 left.

I can either play 0 or 1 this turn. Let me break it down.

If I play 0, that leaves 4 short. Then they play 3-1 and win by virtue of my inability to play 0.

If I play 1, that leaves 3 short. Then they play 3-0 and win by virtue of my inability to play 0.

They've won, unsurprisingly. But this was only practice. I've learned some helpful tips from this session.

**1. **The 0 carries so much power in the endgame when the count is close to the target. Don't waste it.  
><strong>2. <strong>Unlike (or like) the Titanic game in Part Two, majority rule is the key to this game.  
><strong>3. <strong>Each player has three vouchers worth $5 million each. Use these to secure an alliance. You only have three vouchers, so use them wisely.

"With this practice session finished, we will take a 15 minute break, during which we will draw for seats and play order. The target number for the first round will be 72. All players will start with two lives each. Remember, both winners are guaranteed $5 million! Good luck to you all!"

**Author's Note: Whew! Another update! Here we are, folks. The Grand Finale! Sorry it took so long. Anyway, in ten days, I'll move back to College Park to start my second semester. I hope I can get a few more updates in before exams and papers start piling up. We're almost there readers. Until next time, Read and Review!**


	56. The First Two Rounds

**12:30  
>April 3<br>Dana Andrews**

The practice session has just ended and the game is set to begin in 15 minutes. I have three vouchers in hand and, as in every other game that the Confidence Trick threw at me, no use for money. If I give a voucher to each of three people in exchange for one of their own, that's four people I can count on to win, a 40% chance to win. Plus, there will be two winners in this game, I need only one of them to win to at least break even. Just one winning voucher in hand will give me a million dollars toward someone else's debt. There are only three players in debt at the moment and I'm sure that the other seven can cover that with the money they already have.

These 15 minutes are a chance to make friends in this game. I know I'm with Sylvie and Grace is with Schilling, but the other six are up in the air. An alliance of four could trade vouchers so that each of them has one voucher from each ally. The larger the team, the stronger the team is.

As I said before, I have no use for money, so I need to trade my vouchers. A team of three stands much more of a chance than a team of two. The first person I find is Luke Milton, Jr..

"Sure, why not? I don't have any friends here and I don't need the money. I'll join you. Do you have any friends?"

"Yep. One. Sylvie Montaigne." I introduce Sylvie and Luke to one another. Sylvie displays no objection.

"Alright, that makes three of us. Let's see if we can find some more people. If we can find one more person, then we can share our vouchers. We have about 8 minutes before the game starts."

And thus, our search for allies was on. Out of seven remaining players, Grace and Schilling were allied and thus out of consideration, leaving five players. Peter Eagleden, Teruaki Hongou, Daniele l'Aquila, William Kawahara and Soujirou Ijima-Schlossmacher. With three vouchers to a person, an alliance of more than four would be next to impossible. If for some reason an alliance of more than four can only produce one winner, then no more than four of them can profit, so such an alliance would fall apart. Unless all of the members of an alliance are absolutely equal partners, the alliance will fall apart. An alliance of no more than four will guarantee that if any of them wins then they all win. So we can only add one more person.

The first person I ask is Daniele l'Aquila. "Sorry, I'm already with someone else." He's part of another alliance. Do they have two? Three? Four? Whatever the case may be, I have to find someone and there are still four people left to ask. I find William Kawahara and Soujirou Ijima having a talk and offer to work with them.

"Nope, we already have four." Not what I wanted to hear. That means there's already an alliance of four in the game. We have an alliance of three. Just then, I see Eagleden and Hongou exchanging vouchers with l'Aquila and realise that they've formed a third alliance. 3 versus 4 versus 3. Our alliance regroups with no luck.

"Well, that sucks. But we're not totally doomed. There are three factions in this game. Two of them could easily gang up on the third and make it 6 against 4 or 7 against 3."

I realise something. "But once one alliance is out of the picture, the bigger of the two will win. If it comes down to 7 vs 3 and the 7 win, it would make sense for the 4 to betray the other 3 to take it all."

"You're assuming that the alliances would sit together. There's no guarantee of that, so it could be possible for the larger alliance to lose a member. If this happens enough, we could be looking at evened odds." And suddenly, time was up.

"Ladies and gentlemen, we will announce the order of play for Round 1 of this game. When I call your name, you will enter and take the appropriate seat. The first player will be... Teruaki Hongou. Please enter door number 1."

"The next player: Luke Milton Jr.." Luke enters door number 2 and he wishes us luck.

"Peter Eagleden." He slaps himself on the forehead before entering door number 3.

"Wilma Schilling."

"Daniele l'Aquila." He groans in frustration now that his team is lined up in three straight odd-numbered positions. The tenth player could play 0 and leave all three of the Eagleden group to play something other than 0. This was the perfect opportunity for a 7 vs 3.

"Dana Andrews." My name comes up and I leave to take my spot behind door number 6. I enter the theater with five people to my right. Going counterclockwise, l'Aquila, Schilling, Eagleden, Luke and Hongou. The other four players will appear to my left. Ijima, then Kawahara, then Sylvie and lastly, Grace. At last, the first round of this game was set to begin.

**Round 1, Target: 72, All players have 2 lives**

Eagleden's group were in the 1, 3, and 5 spots. This was one of the worst (or best) possible positions. Grace could play a 0 with a count no more than 2 short of the target, costing Eagleden's group a life. Sylvie could save them by playing 0 herself, allowing Eagleden and co. to play 0's of their own. But that could place Luke, Schilling or myself in the line of fire. Their fates would be in the hands of Eagleden's group. Another thing of note is that two of Schilling's number are playing consecutively. If I play 0 with the count equal to the target, then one of them will lose. With 10 players, the count will rise by no less than 5 per turn. Once the count reaches about 55, strategy will come into play. If the 0 backfires, then you will almost certainly lose the round.

For now, everyone plays the highest number they can, which brings the count to 25/72. Eagleden's alliance needs to watch out if the count is at least 60 after l'Aquila's turn. With five players between l'Aquila and Hongou, minus Grace who would play 0, Schilling's group could work with us and push the count to 70, meaning that Eagleden's group would lose the round. But if the count is 70 after l'Aquila's turn, then they're safe.

Again, everyone plays the highest number they can. Hongou plays 1 and everyone else plays either 3 or 2 depending on what they played last. 1, 3, 2, 3, 2, 3, 2, 3, 2, 3. Total: 25+24=49/72. Hongou plays 2 meaning that Luke can only play 1 or 0 and he has no reason to play 0 at this point, thus he plays 1. 52/72. By this point in the game, it is clear that Eagleden's group are the targets for this round. The only way for the target to reach the magic 60 in three moves is if everyone plays the highest number possible: 3, 2, 3. Eagleden and l'Aquila do not want this to happen and so play their lowest non-zero numbers. Eagleden would still have to play 3, but l'Aquila would not. Schilling plays 1 to raise the count to 56. l'Aquila plays 3 to avoid using his 0.

The count is now at 59/72. With five people between Hongou and l'Aquila, we could play any number between 2 and 13. However, Hongou hasn't played 0 so he could pass a full count to Luke and he'll lose the round. We could play 10 with Grace playing 0 to raise the count to 69, but that poses problems with Eagleden's group playing all 1's and then I would face a full count. Playing 0 at that point would mean Ijima would lose the round. If we played 9, with Grace playing 0, then Hongou would face a count of 68. The next time he would have a turn, the count would be 73 at least, thus, he is safe. This leaves numbers between 2 and 8. _So many thoughts going through my mind... no one is safe yet._

I end up playing 1, Ijima plays 3, Kawahara plays 2, Sylvie plays 1 and Grace plays 0. The count is brought to 66/72 with Hongou to play. If after a play, the count is less than five from the target, then the player is 100% safe. Hongou plays a 3 and secures safety. Now Luke is facing a count of 3 short of the target and can play either 2 or 0.

1) If he plays 2 (making it 1 short), then Eagleden plays 0, Schilling can only play 2 or 3 and loses.

2) If he plays 0 (leaving it 3 short), then Eagleden can push it to either 71 (playing 2) or 70 (playing 1), Schilling plays 0, l'Aquila can choose between 1 or 2 and raise the count to either 71 or 72.

2.1) l'Aquila raises the count to 71. I play 0, Ijima and Kawahara play 1 and 0 respectively, raising the count to 72 and Sylvie loses.

2.2) l'Aquila raises the count to 72. I play 0 and Ijima loses.

Eagleden and company have won this round. Luke secures safety by playing 2. Eagleden plays 0 and Schilling can only play 2 or 3 with a count of 71/72.

"Damn." She mutters under her breath.

Denisov appears to announce the result for this round. "Wilma Schilling has lost this round. She has one life remaining. We will now take a five-minute break before the next round starts." With that, we are free to move about.

**End of Round 1  
><strong>**13:10  
><strong>**Wilma Schilling**

The first round didn't go as I wanted it to. I had lost. With five minutes before the next round starts, I have some time to think about how I will defeat Montaigne. She has an attachment to Dana Andrews, almost certainly because his personality reminds her of her brother Morgan. Dana's goal is for no one to leave the Confidence Trick with any debt. A lofty goal, Mr. Andrews. A lofty goal.

If Sylvie wins money from this game, then I've failed. If she loses money, a few million is nothing to the CT. But if Andrews, Montaigne and Milton lose, then Andrews has failed. Yes, I think I have a way to beat Montaigne. I have 5.53 million, Grace has 2.23 million, Ijima has a quarter million and Kawahara owes 1.6 million. This adds up to a surplus of 6.41 million. If none of us win, then we'll owe about 9.5 million total. But if only one of us wins, then we'll win a total of 4 million after paying back the 16 million we were given.

If the Montaigne group gets shut out, then they'll each owe another 4 million on top of whatever they may already owe, an extra 12 million dollars in debt, more than what they'll ever make, pocket change for the CT. The whole interval is spent pondering these thoughts except for a few seconds alleviating worries from Kawahara and Ijima that we might lose. We are gathered once again to learn the order of play for this round.

Denisov calls the order for the round.

**Round 2, Target: 69, All players have 2 lives except for Schilling (1)**

William Kawahara, Dana Andrews, Peter Eagleden, Wilma Schilling, Luke Milton Jr., Grace Black, Teruaki Hongou, Daniele l'Aquila, Sylvie Montaigne, and Soujirou Ijima-Schlossmacher. Let's take a look at how the alliances stand. We are in the 1, 4, 6, and 10 spots. With an alliance of four, it's guaranteed that any two of us will be seated next to one another, or with no more than one intervening player. But this position is very weak as all four of us are in one of these positions. Ijima and Kawahara are playing 10th and 1st (11th) respectively. Grace and I will play 6th and 4th respectively. Montaigne could pass a full count to Ijima and Kawahara and one of them will lose because they cannot both play 0. Or Andrews and Eagleden, with Eagleden playing 0, could pass a full count to eliminate me, or make it 1 short to bring Grace to one life.

For Eagleden's group (playing 3rd, 7th and 8th), Hongou and l'Aquila are next to each other, Grace could pass a full count to them and one of them could lose the round.

In the case of Montaigne's group, they have no weaknesses, being in the 2, 5 and 9 positions. For one of them to lose, we would have to team with Eagleden and company. This would arrange the alliances as follows. Andrews, then 2 players, Milton, then 3 players, Montaigne, then two players. If any of those three raises to a full count, then the alliance of 7 has failed. If we can raise to a full count with the last player of a group playing 0, then one of those three will lose. We've seen a 2 vs 1 situation in the practice session, an easy win for the 2. Both of our groups have positional weaknesses. The Montaigne group does not.

Kawahara has three minutes to make the first move of the round. We discuss the current position with the Eagleden Group. Eagleden realises the situation and decides it best to team up with us, though we are all aware that this superalliance is not binding and that they could betray us to secure their own safety. With that, Kawahara plays 3 to start the round.

Andrews, Montaigne and Milton see that they are alone, at least for this round. Andrews plays 2 and everyone else plays the highest number they can, bringing the count to 25/69, as we did in the first round. The second turn of the round plays out exactly like the second turn of the first round, bringing the count to 49/69, 20 short of the target.

Kawahara plays 2 to bring the count to 51, Andrews plays 1 to bring the count to 52. The target is 69, if they're facing a target of 66 to 68, then they can raise it to 69 and escape. Assuming a group of three with the last player playing 0, that group can play either 3-2-0, 3-1-0, 2-3-0, 2-1-0, 1-3-0, or 1-2-0. Any total between 3 and 5 can be played by a group of three. If we are facing a count of 64 to 66, then we have won this round. With superior numbers, it's easy for us to win.

Eagleden plays 3 and I play 2, raising the count to 57. Milton raises it by 3 to 60. Now's our chance! This is where we have to think.

Montaigne played 2 last, Ijima played 3 last, Kawahara played 2 last and Andrews played 1 last. If Montaigne raises to 69, then she's secured safety for her alliance. Therefore, we cannot raise to 66 or 68, but 67 is fine since she can't play 2. However, with alliances comes betrayal. Eagleden's alliance could raise to 66 and Montaigne to 69, meaning that we would have two players on one life. What will you do, Grace?

"Okay, then 0 it is." Grace plays 0, Hongou plays 1, and l'Aquila plays 0. The count stands at 61. Montaigne plays 1 to raise the count to 62.

Now we have to defend against Andrews. We have to prevent him from raising to 69. This means we can't raise the count to 66 or 67 because he could raise to 69 and secure safety for his alliance. Ijima and Kawahara are next. They have these options:

**Option A: Raise to 65 (playing either 2-1 or 0-3)**

Andrews can either play 0 and keep the count at 65, or raise to 67 or 68, 66 being unavailable because he had played 1 in his last turn. Raising to 67 or 68 would have Milton lose the round and thus Andrews would not see that as an option. Thus, Andrews plays 0 to keep it at 65 and Eagleden and I are next to play.

We would then try to prevent Milton (who played 3 in his last turn) from raising to 68 or 69. We can play either 1-0, 1-3, 2-0, 2-1 or 2-3. 1-0 would raise the count to 66, but Milton would raise to 68 and be safe. 1-3 would raise to 69 and Milton would play 0 to stay safe. 2-0 would raise it to 68 and Milton would play 1 to raise it to 69. 2-1 would raise it to 69 and Milton plays 0. 2-3 would raise it to 71 and is not an option.

**Option B: Raise to 64 (playing 2-0)**

Andrews would raise to either 66 and secures victory.

**Option C: Raise to 63 (playing 1-0)**

Andrews raises to either 65 or 66 and secures victory.

_**Result: Either Grace or l'Aquila loses.**_

Outsmarted again. With no way to ensure safety for all seven of us, we revert to preserving our own alliances. As in Option A, Ijima and Kawahara raise to 65. Andrews plays 0. Now, Eagleden, realising that a superalliance has fallen apart once again, can only play 1 or 2, raising to either 66 or 67. It has already been decided that either Grace or l'Aquila will lose and he wants Grace to lose. Eagleden plays 2, knowing that he has no way of ensuring the safety of his allies.

The count is now at 67. I take the opportunity to save Grace by playing 1 and raising to 68. Milton cannot play 1 now that I have played 1 and thus must play 0. Grace plays 1 to raise to 69 and Hongou saves himself, leaving l'Aquila to lose the round.

"Daniele l'Aquila has lost this round. He has one life remaining. We will now take a five-minute break before the next round starts."

**Author's Note**

**So, what do you think of the game so far? Was it hard to follow? Was there not enough depth to it? Was it confusing? Read and Review! I hope to answer your questions!**


	57. The Three Party System

**Sylvie Montaigne  
><strong>**Saturday, March 25  
><strong>**Spring semester of Freshman year**

We were all ready to play. The game was 4-a-side soccer. This game of soccer was more chaotic than a normal game of soccer would be. Instead of two teams of four, there were three teams of four, playing at the same time, four on four on four.

Now, there are a lot of problems with taking a game for two teams and making it a game for three. The one that is most obvious: How do you keep score? Since there are three goals, a team could strike at one goal and when everyone gathers around them, simply head toward the open third goal.

Luckily, this problem is solved by valuing defense over offense. The team which gives up the fewest goals wins. That raises another question. What do you do about two teams who gang up on the third? Won't the score end up 6-0-0? The obvious answer would be to declare a single winning team. Of course a tie would be settled by extra time and then penalties. But what do you do if the game ends in a 3-way tie after extra time?

How would a 3-team penalty shootout work? Each team would get two shots at each other team. Only then would the win go to the team that scored the most goals. These questions were all raised yesterday in a GovPol lecture by Professor Patrick Keaton. He holds a 3-sided soccer match every semester and there are about a dozen people who come out to play and about 50 people who come out to watch.

In red: Keizou, Kyeongju, Darcy and Michael. In black: Peter, Lindsey, Leonard and myself. In white: Tyler, Darren, Kyle and Dieter. There would be three periods of 15 minutes each, followed by three periods of five minutes should the game be tied, followed by a penalty shootout of four kicks each between any teams still tied.

**- Kickoff -**

Lindsey kicks off to Leonard, who immediately heads for the Red goal along with me and Lindsey, with Peter staying behind to defend our goal. The White team sees this as an opportunity and all four of them join the attack against the Red goal. It's 7 against 4. I pass to Tyler, who passes to Kyle. Kyle easily puts it into the Red net and scores. Only two minutes and the score already stands at Red 1, Black 0, White 0. Black and White have a one goal lead over Red and want the other team to give up a goal. Red simply wants to score. When two teams share the lead, they want the other team to give up a goal. But when one team has an outright lead, the other two are sure to ally against them. We could continue our alliance with the White team, but the deadlock would persist throughout the game. If White and Black, us eight, try to defend both goals, then Red would take a shot at whichever net had the fewest defenders. There was no choice but for each team to defend their own goal.

Finally, in the 14th minute, the Red team found the back of the White net. The score was now Red 1, White 1, Black 0. Now both Red and White would come at us. Two minutes were added to the end of the period. In the first minute of stoppage time, Kyeongju missed wide left and Peter kicked it as far as he could to waste time. One last save and the period was over.

**- 2nd Kickoff -**

During the intermission, Sergio came on for Kyeongju. With our one goal lead over the other two teams, there was no doubt that we would face a 4 against 8 situation, even if both teams left their goalies behind, we would still have to face six players with our four. As it happened, Red sent all four to our goal and White sent three, leaving their keeper to defend. We were outnumbered once again.

But this time, they would not even come close. In the 18th minute, an errant pass by Michael came my way and I dribbled to the Red goal with my three teammates behind me. With the net empty, it was a race.

"Lenny!" He turned and I passed the ball his way. He passed to Lindsey who passed to Peter. Peter passed back to Lindsey but Sergio caught up to us and took posession, heading for the White goal, where only Tyler was waiting for him. The White team rushed back to their goal and we returned to ours. Only a fingertip save deflected the ball wide right. Since the ball was closest to the Black goal when it went out, we got a corner kick.

Each White player covered an opponent, but that still left three players open for a pass. Leonard kicks and Keizou heads it in. 24 minutes played and the score stands at White 2, Red 1, Black 0. However, two minutes later, we were unable to hold off Red and White as we did last time. White 2, Red 1, Black 1. May came on for Peter after this. We were back to two teams leading the third by one goal. Once again, the team behind wants to score. Once again, the teams ahead want to defend their goal, but also to take an outright lead.

We decide to put three of us on defense. Leonard will attack the Red goal when the chance comes up. Four minutes left in the period. Once again, the Red and White teams converge on us as they did before and we have to play defense for the rest of the period. Five straight saves from May preserve our lead and leave the score at 2-1-1.

**- 3rd Kickoff -**

Maarten came on for Darren to start the third and final period. The score was two goals against White and one goal each against Red and Black. The second period ended with a failed assault on our goal. We'll surely have to face another 8 versus 4 onslaught at some point in this period. Sure enough, the third period begins as the second ended. However, another missed shot gives us a goal kick. The Red team retreats to its goal and the White team retreats to the nearest center line. The kick goes straight to the White team and it becomes 8 versus 4, White and Black versus Red this time. 33 minutes played.

The chance to score was not meant to be, as Sergio caught the ball and threw it straight at our goal. With the goal in our part of the pitch once again, the White team betrayed us, joining the Red team and reversing the 8 against 4 situation. After giving up a goal, I came off for Peter and watched the rest of the match. White 2, Black 2, Red 1. With ten minutes left in regulation, White and Black would have to score a single goal against Red to tie the game. Even after this, at least two goals would have to be scored for a winner to be determined without extra time. The Red team therefore made no effort on offense for the rest of the match. They survived five minutes before Michael handballed and gave up a penalty. Kyle took the penalty and easily scored his second goal, tying the game at two goals against each team.

40 minutes played, each team tied at two goals conceded. Darcy seized the ball for the Red team and with most of the players having converged on the Red goal, she charged at the White goal and took the shot, but was denied. With the ball headed for our goal, everyone followed the ball and tried to put one in the Black goal. Another save sends the ball back to the White goal, but Tyler shoots it to the Red goal. After a fierce scramble, Lindsey gets the ball and fires into the net. Score. 44 minutes into the match, Red 3, White 2, Black 2.

Once again two teams have a one goal lead over the third, but there is not enough time to break the deadlock before the whistle blows, ending regulation.

**- Extra Time - **

45 minutes completed and no winner. We would play another 15 minutes and if the score was still tied, then any tied teams would go to a shootout. Four kicks per team. We would rotate every five minutes.

The score was Red 3, White 2, Black 2. With two teams once again leading the third by a single goal, the third just wants one of them to concede. That would make it much, much easier for two teams to converge on the third and even up the score. The best thing for White and Black to do would be to defend, defend, defend for the next ten minutes. The ball wound up in White territory and we decided that our lead would not hold against two other teams, thus, we would not join the offense. Keizou scored against White in the 48th minute. It was our turn to defend and we held them off until the whistle blew, but in the 52nd minute, Maarten scored and we were once again tied.

With eight minutes left in extra time, no one dared to score so late in the game, for fear of creating a kingmaker scenario. Any attacks would have to be made too late for any retaliation. In the end, Red and Black mounted one last assault on White, but were denied again and again and the final whistle blew. All three teams were still tied on three goals each.

This first hour of the game was much like a three-party system. During the game, any two teams can work against the third, but each of the three teams would find it difficult to win on their own power. Since there can only be one winning team, alliances will be made and broken and one team will find itself on top. But if that happens too early, they could be defending their goal against eight players. Even if both opposing teams left their keepers behind, the defending team would still be two players down. Thus, the game would stand still.

**- Penalty Shootout -**

45 minutes left two teams tied and forced an extra 15. 60 minutes left all three teams tied and thus, the three-team penalty shootout was in order. Each team shoots twice to each opposing goalkeeper for a total of four kicks per side. The team who scores the most goals wins. If two teams are tied, they each shoot once to the opposing goalkeeper. If all three teams are tied, they each shoot once to each opposing goalkeeper. The order was decided randomly, except that no team would shoot or defend two shots in a row. Red would shoot to Black, Black would shoot to White, White would shoot to Red, then Red to White, White to Black, and Black to Red. Any player from the teams involved could play either role.

The first shot pits Sergio (Red) against Peter (Black). Sergio easily sends Peter the wrong way and scores. The Red team has made its first kick.

The second shot was May (Black) against Maarten (White). Tyler decided to let Maarten become the keeper for the shootout. Another easy goal, the ball finds the corner of the net.

The third shot was Tyler (White) against Sergio (Red). Sergio overthinks the shot and stays where he is, while Tyler knocks it to Sergio's right and scores. We were now tied at one goal each.

Keizou takes the Red team's second shot against Maarten. Maarten gets his hand on the ball, but it isn't enough to keep the ball out.

Maarten takes the White team's second shot against Peter, and scores, bringing the White team level with the Red team.

The pressure is on me. I'm taking our second shot against Keizou. He dives the other way and we're tied at two goals each.

Six kicks taken, six goals scored. Six kicks left to be taken. The tension mounts, one miss and it could be over.

Red kicks to Black again. This time, it's Michael taking Red's third penalty. Once again, the goalie fails to save it.

Peter takes our third shot against Maarten. Again, we score and keep pace with Red.

Darren has to make this shot for White to have any decent chance to win. He shoots... and scores. 3-3-3! One kick for each team, sudden death. Any teams that miss will have absolutely no chance to catch up. If all three kicks miss or all three kicks score, then each team will get two more kicks. If only two teams score with their last shots, those teams will get only one kick each. If only one team scores, that team wins.

The last round of penalties was at hand and started with Darcy's shot. This shot was critical, all three would be critical. The ball is kicked and... rolls right past Maarten. Goal! The Red team survives. Now, Dieter is the last hope for the White team. The keeper, Peter Chapman. Dieter, despite the pressure, easily pushes the ball into the goal.

All eyes were on Lindsey and Leonard, the two Black players who had not yet taken a kick. They decided to play rock-paper-scissors for the kick. Lindsey won and everything rested in her hands. Keizou Taninaka was the one person she had to beat to take the shootout to six more kicks. All 11 kicks were successful so far. All of the pressure that was focused on the 15 players was focused towards her.

... Absolute silence... That was all that existed for six yards. And suddenly, Keizou slammed the ball onto the pitch, and let a victorious cry ring through.

"Good job, sis." Leonard high-fived his sister, there was no question that all 15 of us played as best we could. There was no one to blame for our loss. With Keizou's save, 4-4-3 was the score after four kicks.

Keizou had made the first save of the shootout. He had eliminated half of the opposition and only needed one save instead of possibly needing two. The Red team and the White team would continue the shootout, but would only take one kick each. One player on each team has not taken a kick until now. From the Red team, Kim Kyeongju. From the White team, Kyle Symons.

Kyeongju's penalty was saved by Maarten. Now Kyle could win it for the White team with a single shot. If he missed, then the shootout would go on for one more shot from each team. Kyle shoots... Keizou dives, but is too low as the ball hits the crossbar. When the ball rebounded inside the goal, the same victorious cry from Keizou and his save came from Kyle.

The White team almost instantly ran in Kyle's direction and throw him into the air. The Red team comes up to us and we shake hands, thanking them for the match. With the celebration over, the White team joins in and the 15 of us congratulate each other. We took photos and talked about the game until we had to return to our respective lives.

A two party system is all about majority rule. Whichever side has more seats than the other will govern. But a three party system complicates things. There is not much of a chance of one party having more votes than the other two added together. The split could be something such as 45-35-20 or 40-30-30. In such cases, no single party can govern, but any two parties can unite against the third. Even then, the coalition can fall apart and one of those parties can govern with the third. Here we are in the Grand Finale of the Confidence Trick, a prime example of the three party system.


	58. Please Come With Me

**13:15  
>Sylvie Montaigne<br>April 3**

Two rounds finished and we were unscathed, Schilling and l'Aquila having lost one life each. Dana was worried that one of us might be next. But I told him that they might not get the opportunity if we're not in the right positions.

However, in the back of my mind, I know that we only have three people. If someone betrays their alliance for either Eagleden's group or our group, then the existing members of the alliance being joined can give the voucher bearing their name, giving each member of the new alliance of four one voucher from each ally. However, this opportunity is only available to the first two people who take it. If Schilling's group, the existing alliance of four, loses a member to one of the other alliances, then a third person could defect to their side.

"Hello." I find that the voice belongs to neither Dana nor Luke. I turn around and see Daniele l'Aquila. "I want to join you. I feel safer in an alliance of four than in an alliance of three. Especially since I've already lost a life."

Dana instantly defends him. "We should help him."

"Then how about you give us the three vouchers you already have. If you want us to help you, then help us."

"Of course." He has more confidence in us than he does in them, so he surrenders the three vouchers in his possession in exchange for one voucher bearing each of our names. Dana received the Hongou voucher, Luke received the l'Aquila voucher, and I kept the Eagleden voucher. Each of the three of us then gave one voucher with our own names.

"Attention players, please gather as we announce the order of play for Round 3."

**Round 3, Target: 66, All players have 2 lives except for Schilling and l'Aquila (1 each)**

As each player is called, they take their seat inside the theatre. The rest of the order will be revealed as each player enters the theatre and takes his or her seat. "The first player, Wilma Schilling... The second player, Teruaki Hongou... The third player, Sylvie Montaigne." I enter the theater with Hongou to my right and Schilling to his right. Luck turned against us as our new ally Daniele and Dana filed in and took the two seats to my left. Schilling's group didn't fare much better. Kawahara and Black entered the theater. Following them were Eagleden, Luke and finally, to complete the Schilling alliance's disadvantage, Ijima. We had three players in a row, Schilling's group had two pairs of two straight players and the only disadvantage for Eagleden and Hongou was their numbers, they had no positional weaknesses. The only way for Eagleden's group to lose this round is if we work with Schilling. I just can't do that. They might work with us, but I will not work with them.

The round starts with Schilling playing 3 and Hongou playing 2. We decide to try something different (not that it matters) and play 1, 3, and 1 to bring the count to 10. The first turn of the round has everyone playing random numbers, but not 0. These next five plays are 2, 1, 2, 3 and 2, which brings the count to 20/66.

The next round also consists of random plays. Starting with Schilling's play, the second cycle goes 1, 3, 2, 1, 3, 1, 3, 1, 2 and 1. This brought the count to 38/66.

Early in the round, there is no strategy aside from not playing 0. But late in the round, everyone is concerned about safety for their alliance. Luke or Dana could pass a full count and Schilling's group would lose the round and possibly a player. Or Hongou could pass a full count to us and either Dana, Daniele, or I could lose a life.

As it happened, Schilling played 3, raising the count to 41. Hongou played 2 for a count of 43. I played 1, Daniele played 2 and Dana played 1. 47/66. Kawahara plays 2 and Black plays 1. The count stands at 50/66. 16 short of the target.

Eagleden played 2 to raise the count to 52/66. 14 short of the target. If my turn comes around with a count no more than 7 short, then we can score against either Kawahara or Black. If the four players before me play a total of at least 7, then either Kawahara or Black will lose the round.

If Luke plays 3, then that would leave only 4 points of breathing room for the other three players. Their best course of action is for Ijima to play 0 and Schilling to play 1, raising the count to 56/66. But then Hongou would play 3 to raise the count to the magic 59 and we play 2, 3 and 2 to raise the count to 66. This exact sequence of plays happens and Kawahara must choose whether to save himself or save Black. "Let's decide this like adults." Kawahara and Black extend their arms and play rock-paper-scissors. Black loses and Kawahara plays 0, condemning Black to lose the round.

"Grace Black has lost this round. She has one life remaining. We will now take a five-minute break before the next round starts."

**13:32  
>Wilma Schilling<strong>

Now, we have two players on one life each. Soujirou and William spend the break talking to each other about the best and worst case scenarios. Grace and I spend the five minutes mulling over the game. What can we do to turn this around. If we lose a player, then we'll have weaker numbers, but there won't be as many chances for two of us to be seated next to one another. That does nothing about the other two alliances uniting against us, but a single alliance can't bully us as easily. If we lose a player, then all three groups will have three players each. Wait, l'Aquila was on their side, so they have four while Eaglden's group has only two players. If we lose a player in the next round, then the alliances will stand at 4 (Montaigne) against 3 (us) against 2 (Eagleden). Everything would then be against Montaigne and company, as they have only one fewer player than the other two alliances put together. But the majority will not necessarily win against more than one player. If every player unites against one, then that player will lose.

With three alliances, any two can work against the third. But with only two alliances, the game will become much easier, as it will become one alliance against the other. A draw between the two alliances may be possible. No, the last round would be two versus one, the single player in this scenario would have no power. The pair would hold all of the cards against a solo player.

The alliances currently stand at 4 in Montaigne's group, 4 in our group and 2 in Eagleden's group. As mentioned before, as long as two players are working together, difficult though it may be, they could end up as the last two players and guarantee themselves $2 million plus $5 million for each voucher they have with either of their names on it. Even if they gave all of their vouchers, a million dollars each would most likely be more money than they would ever see in their lives.

Another thought enters my mind. What if it becomes 4 against 3. Would it be possible for an absolute majority of players to lose? It could be, but I don't have time to calculate the conditions under which this would be possible. There's three minutes left. With brute force calculations out of the question, I spend the three minutes that remain in a blank state of mind. Nothing else exists for the next three minutes.

"Attention players, please gather as we announce the order of play for Round 4."

**Round 4, Target: 63, All players have 2 lives except for Schilling, l'Aquila and Black (1 each)**

The players were seated in this order. Hongou, Ijima, Montaigne, l'Aquila, Eagleden, Andrews, myself, Milton, Kawahara and finally, Grace. This time, all eight players in the alliances of four were in vulnerable, but powerful positions. Once again, the Eagleden alliance's only disadvantage was in their numbers. The target has been lowered to 63, with three players at risk of elimination.

Still, I see no reason to ask for help from Montaigne and her allies. With the target too high and all three alliances still standing, the first round is played at random, with the only rule followed being that nobody plays 0.

3, 2, 1, 2, 1, 2, 3, 2, 1, 3 are the first ten plays. 20/63 is the count after this first lap around the table. 43 short of the target. The count can rise at a rate of between 5 and 25 per lap, 43 short is too far ahead for any of us to think. So another round of random moves is in order. 2, 3, 2, 1, 3, 1, 2, 1, 2, 1... 38/63. 25 short of the target. To recap, we are sitting in the 7th, 9th, 10th and 2nd (12th) positions. Montaigne and her friends are sitting at the 3rd, 4th, 6th, and 8th positions. Eagleden and Hongou respectively, have the 5th and 1st seats. 25 short of the target, everyone will have at least one more turn, so no one can play 0 just yet. Hongou is next, he played 2 on his last turn, Grace, the player before him, played 1, so he plays 3. Ijima plays 1, forcing the next three plays, 3, 2, 1. 48/63. Dana plays 3 to force a 1 from me. 52/63.

11 short of the target. The next players are Milton, Kawahara, Grace, Hongou and Ijima. Three of the next five players are in the same alliance. If Ijima can bring the count to 1 short, then all of us are safe. Milton plays 0 to lure us away from l'Aquila. If Grace and Kawahara play their maximum, that would bring the count to 6 short. If they play 3 then 2, Hongou could move the count to either 6 or 5 short. This is where problems begin to appear.

It would be impossible to calculate all of the possible plans of action in the three minutes given for each move. That's what makes this game difficult. You don't know if you're safe until just before the round ends.

As it happened, Kawahara and Grace played 3 and 2. The count was now 6 short. Hongou played 1.

Ijima could play either 0, 2, or 3.

**Scenario 0 (still 5 short)**

Montaigne and l'Aquila could play 2-3, 2-1, 2-0, 1-3, or 1-0.

2-3 would trigger a full count, Eagleden would play 0 and Andrews would lose.

2-1 would make it 2 short. Eagleden would play 2 to eliminate me, as both opposing alliances would benefit from us losing a player.

**Scenario 2 (3 short)**

The available choices are now 1-0, 0-1, 0-3.

0-3 would have Andrews lose, not an option for them.

1-0 would make it 2 short and Eagleden would play 2, once again, we lose.

With 0 and 2 giving us losing outcomes, Ijima's only choice is to play 3 for better or for worse. He does so.

The round ends with Monataigne playing 2 and l'Aquila playing 0, forcing either 2 or 3 from Eagleden.

"Peter Eagleden has lost this round. He has one life remaining. We will now take a five-minute break before the next round starts." A sigh of relief escapes me.

**13:48  
>Peter Eagleden<strong>

Well this sucks. I'm down to one life and the 7.6 million I won so far will not be enough to cover both myself and Teru. But we need only one of us to win. Even l'Aquila, a traitor he may be, could give us the win and all three of us would walk out as winners.

"Pete, do you think l'Aquila could actually win?"

"He has support from Montaigne's alliance and he has support from us. He has more allies than anyone in this game. I'm actually glad he betrayed us. Since this game will end with two winners, and l'Aquila is very likely going to be one of them, it's just a matter of who will win the other half of the jackpot."

Teru only nods in approval, the worst case scenario still in the back of his mind. What if we get completely shut out. We bought in to this game with $4 million each. With three people, that totals $12 million. I only have about $7.65 million, almost, almost enough to cover two people. Teru has a quarter of a million. That still leaves $4.1 million. Two of us could walk out of here debt free assuming everything goes against us. I am perfectly prepared to give myself up for Teru and Dan. I can't tell anyone, because they would try to make the same sacrifice. It would effectively be a race to the bottom. Dan may have only one life, but he has five people backing him. This game will get more intense every round. As the target continues to drop, the opening moves will become less random, but the endgame will never change.

Once again, the game starts as we are called up one at a time. No one has been eliminated... yet. With four players facing elimination, this round will see the first elimination in this game or add a name to the list of players on one life.

"Attention players, please gather as we announce the order of play for Round 5."

**Round 5, Target: 60, Schilling, l'Aquila, Black and Eagleden have one life each, all other players have two lives each. **

The order of play for this round was announced, one name at a time. Wilma Schilling, Grace Black, our (former) ally Daniele l'Aquila, Luke Milton Jr, William Kawahara. That was five names called.

The second half of the order was announced. Sylvie Montaigne, Soujirou Ijima-Schlossmacher, Peter Eagleden, Dana Andrews and finally, Teruaki Hongou.

Montaigne's group are sitting in the 3rd, 4th, 6th and 9th spots. Schilling's group are sitting in the 1st, 2nd, 5th and 7th spots. Teru sat in the 10th spot and I sat 8th.

The round starts with random moves as always, given the existence of three sides. 1, 3, 2, 1, 2, 3, 2, 3, 1, and 2. The count stood at 20/60 after one lap around the table.

With Teru playing 2 and Schilling having played 1, Schilling plays 3 for her second turn. The second lap plays out like the first did, with random moves, but no 0's, yet. 1, 3, 2, 3, 1, 3, 1, 3, and 1 bring the count to 41/60. 19 short and 10 players. The last round revealed a valuable tool in this game. If someone plays 1 and the following player played 0 in their last turn or vice versa, then the lowest number that can be played is 2!. Again, I am in the 8th position and Teru is in the 10th position. The maximum that can be played by the seven players between Teru and myself is 17, (alternating between 2's and 3's). We would then play 0's for the kill.

As it happened, Schilling played 1 and Black played 2. With the count still too low to play 0 at 16 short, l'Aquila plays 1 (played 3 last turn, most recent play was 2) and Milton plays 3 (played 2 last turn). The count stands at 12 short. Kawahara plays 0 to keep it at 12 short. Montaigne plays 3 to cut it to 9 short. Ijima to play and two of his allies are in danger. Teru, Andrews and I could play anything that adds to 8 or less. We are safe no matter what. Ijima plays 0 to possibly bring his friends out of the line of fire. I play 3 to bring the count to 6 short.

Andrews knows that his group is now in the line of fire. Regardless of the next two moves, Schilling and Black will be safe. He plays 0 hoping that it will extend the round. Teru plays 3 and secures safety for both of us. And I realize that l'Aquila will lose the round and be eliminated. This is a major setback. Both Teru and I will lose a voucher! l'Aquila has already given away all three of his vouchers and is backing his new allies, only one of whom has to win! Shit!

Schilling plays 2, and Black plays 0, forcing a 2 or a 3 from l'Aquila, both of which will end the round.

"Daniele l'Aquila has lost this round. He has been eliminated. Please show any vouchers bearing his name, these will be voided, as he is no longer in contention to win." All three vouchers with the l'Aquila name on them are shown and confiscated by Denisov. "We will take a five minute break before the next round starts. Mr. l'Aquila, you will be sequestered for the remainder of the game. Other players will join you as they are eliminated. You will be able to communicate and bargain with other eliminated players." We leave the theater and another CT official enters the scene.

"Mr. l'Aquila, please come with me." l'Aquila follows the order and leaves the game, taking his three vouchers with him. The three vouchers that he took with him when he left plus the three vouchers that were voided make six removed from the game. 24 vouchers divided among 9 players. As more players are eliminated, there's no doubt that the last three or four players will have no vouchers left and are only playing for themselves. Anything can happen in this game. Whether you think it's possible or not, anything could happen. There could be a 99% chance or even a 1% chance, but these might as well be 50-50.


	59. Feud

**Round 6, Target: 57, l'Aquila eliminated, Schilling, Black and Eagleden have one life each.  
><strong>**Wilma Schilling  
><strong>**14:08**

This round began as normal. I played 3, Andrews played 1 and then Montaigne played 3. Kawahara was the next to something was off. He was mulling over his opening move. The count was only 7/57. A full 50 short of the target. How can he expect to predict how everyone else will play with three alliances in the game?

Wait a minute... a voucher bearing the name of a winner will be worth $5 million. You can win for yourself, or you can let someone else win. l'Aquila had at least three vouchers with him when he left the game. He had switched from Eagleden's alliance to Montaigne's, but that doesn't answer the question of which vouchers, if any, he traded. He could have any three vouchers with any three names on them. Kawahara's probably trying to trade with him! You don't have to win the game to win cash and Kawahara knows that. Worse, any attempt to counter this strategy would require being eliminated yourself. Nobody wants to do that.

"Mr. Kawahara, two minutes have passed since the last move, if you do not respond in one minute, you will receive an official warning, a second warning at any point later on will end that round with you losing a life."

"I concede. Is that allowed?"

"If you are absolutely certain, you may end the round without making a move. However, you will lose the round and one life."

"Then I wish to concede this round _and the next round_." Damnit! What are you doing?! You're just going to leave us like this?! Am I hallucinating?

With money on the table, some people are willing to do anything to win. It takes only a second for me to realise that this is a legitimate strategy. This is the Confidence Trick, this is a con. There's no such thing as the status quo in games like these.

We exit the theater and Kawahara follows a CT official out of the venue.

"You will be sequestered with the other eliminated players. You may communicate and bargain with them at any time, but you must remain in the sequestration area until the game ends. We will take a five minute break before continuing the game at Round 8, with a target of 51.

As always, between rounds, Grace and I discuss possible strategies for the rest of the game. No doubt that two eliminations in quick succession have complicated things. With the alliances now standing at 3, 3, and 2, the game will be even less predictable. The count will move by no less than four in a given lap around the table. Worse, Grace and I are facing elimination, each of us having only one life. Meanwhile, Montaigne and company all have two lives left. All eyes will be on them.

**Round 8, Target: 51, Kawahara resigned, Schilling, Black and Eagleden have one life each. **

The order of play for this round was announced. Eight players remain.

"Sylvie Montaigne... Dana Andrews..." All eyes fell on Montaigne and Andrews before the round even started. More reason to go after them.

The announcement continued. "Peter Eagleden... Wilma Schilling... Grace Black..." Shit! We both have one life and now we're playing the round back to back. Eagleden could betray us and push a full count on us.

"Soujirou Ijima-Schlossmacher..." That makes all three of us playing back to back, as if things could get no worse.

"Teruaki Hongou... Luke Milton Jr." The order was set. Both alliances of three had all of their members playing back to back. The alliance of two, Eagleden and Hongou were spread as far apart as possible. With everyone in the theatre, the round was ready to start.

The target was set at 51 for this round. A team of three could play a combination of numbers that added to between 1 and 8. Even with the most restrictive of circumstances, they could still play something between 2 and 7. If they set the count a multiple of 9 short of the target, they could win the round assuming the Eagleden alliance isn't out to get them. Their presence in this game make the game more complicated than it has to be. Eagleden would be more than inclined to work with us to ensure that Andrews can't push a full count on us. But there is always the chance of a last minute betrayal. In the end, the first lap around the table is played randomly as is every round before it. 1, 3, 2, 3, 1, 2, 1, 3. The count stood at 16/51 after the first round.

35 short is still too early for anyone to use their 0, so some moves are made by default. Montaigne plays 2, Andrews plays 1 and Eagleden plays 3. 16+6=22. It's my turn to play and I can choose between 1 and 2.

Every opposing alliance will benefit from the elimination of a player. Eagleden could very easily push a full count on me or Grace and take someone out of the game. The count stands at 29 short. With nothing to go on, and no other alliance to put all of my trust in, I arbitrarily play 2. Grace plays 3 and Soujirou plays 1. Soon, everyone else will play and it'll be our turn again. The second lap ends with Hongou playing 3 and Milton playing 2 to bring the count to 33/51. 18 short. Now the count would move more slowly.

The third lap began with Montaigne and Andrews playing 3 and 2 respectively. The count was now 13 short with Eagleden to play. He instinctively plays 0, keeping the count at 13 short.

With myself, Grace, Soujirou and Hongou, the highest we can play is 3, 2, 3, 2. That would bring the count to 3 short, but open the door for Eagleden or someone else to eliminate either me or Grace. Also, Hongou could turn on us. It's a risk I'm not prepared to take.

Let's take Hongou out of the equation for now. The three of us can play a sequence of number that add up to between 3 and 8. If we play 3, then the count will be 10 short. If we play 8, then the count will be 5 short. Our only hope is to play 8 and pray that Montaigne and company decide to eliminate Eagleden. I never once thought that I would need Montaigne to survive in this game. But this is the Confidence Trick. Alliances are made to be broken and made again as the situation requires. We have no choice but to trust them and play 3, 2, and 3. 46/51. Hongou plays 0, hoping to buy time for Eagleden to escape the line of fire, but this proves useless when Milton plays 3, Montaigne plays 2 and Andrews plays 0.

"Peter Eagleden has lost this round. He has been eliminated. Please show any vouchers bearing his name, these will be voided, as he is no longer in contention to win." All three vouchers with the Eagleden name on them are shown and voided. "We will take a five minute break before the next round starts. Mr. Eagleden, you will be sequestered for the remainder of the game. Other players will join you as they are eliminated. You will be able to communicate and bargain with other eliminated players."

"Damnit." The eight of us exit the building and Eagleden is escorted from the venue by CT officials. Hongou is the only remaining member of the Eagleden alliance. With Eagleden's departure, the game has become 3 vs 3 vs 1.

**14:33**

The next round is to start in five minutes. The game has become 3v3v1 with Eagleden's departure. What hasn't changed is the presence of three sides. But it will be much easier for Hongou to switch sides because eliminating him confers no benefit to the other alliances who will be deadlocked at 3 on 3. But once another player leaves, assuming it isn't Hongou, the alliances will become 3v2v1. Hongou could very well join the alliance of two to even things up. Grace, Soujirou and I think about the possible outcomes of this round until the time comes to start Round 9.

Suddenly, a man enters our group of three. I can only recognise him as Teruaki Hongou. Before we can speak, he introduces himself. "I would like to work with you."

**14:38  
><strong>**Peter Eagleden  
><strong>**Sequestration area**

The two vouchers in my hands are all I have in this game after I was eliminated. I've won 7.651 million dollars in the Confidence Trick. The buy-in for this final game was 4 million dollars. Even if things fell apart for me, I would still have over $3.5 million. I'm happy with that and there are people who need the money more than I do.

I enter the sequestration area and find Daniele and Kawahara looking at the screen.

"Hey, Peter." Daniele acknowledges my arrival and greets me.

"Hey, Dani. Listen." He turns 100% of his attention to me. "I don't know if you know this, but I've actually won over $7.5 million in the Confidence Trick." No reaction. He probably knows that no one in their right mind would disclose the fact that they had money from the Confidence Trick, let alone such a large sum. "We bought into this game with $4 million. Even if everything goes wrong for me and I lose that $4 million, I'll still have $3.5 million. So this is the least I can do for you." My hand reaches out and Daniele sees the vouchers. One says the name Dana Andrews, the other says the name Teruaki Hongou. "If things don't work out and all three of us lose, I'm prepared to pay the price."

"Oh, you don't have to do that."

"Well, I'm not prepared to argue with you on this. If we lose, I'm paying and that's that. You don't need to worry about a thing. Now, let's sit back and watch this horse race." The others are playing in Round 9 of this game. Seven players left, four vouchers, two winners.

**Round 9, Target: 48, Eagleden eliminated, Schilling and Black have one life each.  
><strong>**14:38  
><strong>**Dana Andrews**

With Denisov's command for the players to gather, the ninth round officially began. We were approaching halftime. My goals for this game have not changed, and neither have Sylvie's goals. Everyone will escape this game, I guarantee it. Sylvie wants to know the true mastermind behind this Confidence Trick. However, there are no guarantees win or lose that she'll be able to find that out. Her second goal coincides with my first goal. The easiest way to ensure that everyone escapes is to win. That way we can give our winnings to anyone still in debt. If we don't win, we have to hope that the eventual winners have enough of a conscience to give up their winnings.

The order of play for this round is announced.

"Sylvie Montaigne,... Wilma Schilling,... Soujirou Ijima-Schlossmacher,... Dana Andrews,..." I enter the theatre behind the three called before me. In the end, Grace, Hongou and Luke follow me to complete the order. The four players not on our side are split two and two with one person in between. The alliances are split **2**-2-**1**-2. Had the split been 2-2-2-2, the round would be very easy. But this one missing player is throwing everyone for a loop. You can't strategise more than a couple moves ahead.

The first lap around the table goes 1, 2, 1, 3, 1, 3, 2. 13/48. 35 short is much too far ahead for us to think.

The second lap goes 3, 1, 2, 1, 3, 2, 3. 28/48. The count now stands at 20 short. At the current pace, we had about two laps left in the round. Any players who played 0 after this point would be vulnerable. Even playing 1 might not be safe unless the player before you played 0. Sylvie plays 2 and Schilling plays 3. Ijima plays 1 to bring the count to 34/48. I play 3 to escape this threat, the only thing in this game I can really do. Grace and Hongou play 2 and 3 respectively, bringing the count to 42/48.

With two allies and two enemies before me, no matter what Luke and Sylvie do, Schilling and Ijima can ensure that I face a full count. But I can play 0 and eliminate Grace. Ijima will have to play 0 in order for me to lose the round.

Luke plays 2, Sylvie plays 0. Schilling plays 1, Ijima plays 0, but the count is at 45/48. I'm safe, but what about Luke? What about Sylvie? We all have two lives each, so none of us will leave the game after this round. I played 3 last turn, so I can't force a full count on Grace and Hongou. If I play 2, then Sylvie will definitely lose the round. If I play 1, then Grace and Hongou can force a full count and choose who loses the round between Sylvie and Luke.

"Go ahead, Dana. I can still win with one life." Of course Sylvie would say something like that. She always wins. Can I trust her to find a way to win in this last game? What kind of question is that? Of course I can.

"I trust you, Sylvie." I press the 1 button and the count moves to 46/48.

"Luke, don't think about losing this round. You'll be much more comfortable on two lives than on one. I'll find a way to win this game." It pains Luke to watch Grace and Hongou force a full count on him and make him press the 0 button. Sylvie presses 3 and the round ends.

"Sylvie Montaigne has lost this round. We will take a five minute break before the next round starts."

With Sylvie's defeat, the alliances remain where they were, at 3v3v1 or 3v4 if Hongou did indeed join them. Nine rounds played. We're halfway there, but this game could already be over for us. We have to hope that the next round does not see us sitting next to each other.

Five minutes pass and Round 10 is set to begin.

**Round 10, Target: 45, Schilling, Black, and Montaigne have one life each.**

"We will announce the order of play for this round." If all three of us are seated next to one another, one of us will lose the round. If Sylvie loses this round, it'll be the two of us against four.

"Soujirou Ijima-Schlossmacher... Teruaki Hongou... Luke Milton Jr. ..." This is it, the moment of truth.

"Grace Black..." I take a deep breath, knowing that this game was still far from over.

"Dana Andrews..." I enter the theatre, waiting for the rest of the order to be announced. Schilling ends up in the sixth position and Sylvie in the seventh. This creates a situation where every ally is followed by an enemy. Every player except for possible Ijima and Hongou is flanked by two enemies. With the prescence of a seventh player, the result of this round is up in the air. Hell, any arrangement that doesn't involve allies seated together in their own cluster is up in the air.

With the target set at 45 for this round and the pattern once again inconsistent throughout this round's rotation, the first couple of turns from each player are random as they have been in previous rounds. The first lap goes 1, 2, 3, 1, 3, 2, 1, giving a count of 13/45. The second lap goes 2, 3, 2, 3, 1, 3, 2. It never crosses anyone's mind to play 0 at an early point in any of the rounds previously played. Of course, it isn't irrational not to do so. Not playing 0 does not affect the unpredictability of the game. I guess everyone's trying to save time, or everyone is paranoid that people will take advantage of their vulnerability and jack up the count so that by the time it comes back to them, they'll exceed the target and lose the round. Whatever the case may be, there's an unwritten rule against playing 0 in the early part of the round.

The count stands at 29/45, 16 short. Of the three players at risk of elimination in this game, Grace is to my immediate left and Schilling and Sylvie are to my immediate right.

Ijima plays 3 and Hongou plays 2. The count can move between 1 and 5 per two players. With the count at 11 short, everyone is in the line of fire. As the count increases, the line shrinks and some players become completely safe. With the count at 11 short, we decide to power through and play high.

Luke plays 3 and Grace plays 2. I play 3 to continue the push. The count stands at 3 short, 42/45.

Wilma plays 1 to limit Sylvie's options to either 0 or 3. With the count now at 2 short, Sylvie cannot afford to play 3 as that would take her out of the game. She plays 0 by default, leaving Ijima and Hongou to strike at Luke. With their 2 and 0, Luke is unable pass the full count to Grace, and loses the round.

"Luke Milton Jr. has lost this round. We will take a five minute break before the next round starts."

Now, two of us are facing elimination in the next round. We're outnumbered four against three. Our only hope is that we aren't seated next to one another. Should the draw not go our way, we could very well be down to four on two. Schilling and company have the upper hand.

Something flashes in my mind. Sylvie is the reason that Schilling and Grace are still here after all this time. Schilling wants revenge against her and that entails beating her in this game. There's no convincing her to give up, so my only goal is for everyone to make it out of this game debt free. There are no second chances. That's what I first thought when I faced Grace in the first game of the Confidence Trick. We all know how it feels to be hundreds of thousands of dollars down with no guarantees of a chance to win that money back. Everyone will come out of this game debt free. I don't care if this feud is never resolved.

**Author's Note:**

**That took longer than it should have. Three and a half weeks is too long for a single update. But life happens. I took one midterm, have three major assignments coming up today, had to go to the hospital Tuesday night, as I just said, life. Things happen in life, but despair not, my readers, Spring Break is upon us. **


	60. Not Over Yet

**15:00  
><strong>**5 minutes until Round 11 starts  
><strong>**Dana Andrews**

This game will end with everyone out of debt. I don't care if this feud between Sylvie Montaigne and Wilma Schilling never ends. I don't care who wins. I don't care how much beating the other will matter to either of them. But I see no way to ensure that everyone...wait a second. Last time the four of us met, in Part Three, Sylvie was the only one who lost money in the game. We had convinced Schilling to pay off all of the players who would not advance to Part Four. In that game, she signed onto a contract. But in this Grand Finale, the only contracts that are enforceable are those involving the exchange of vouchers. No favours can be safely exchanged. But I know she won't endanger other players. She's not that kind of person.

Both of them have lost it all. Schilling lost her life savings in a scam. Money can be regained when it's lost, that's been done hundreds of times in the Confidence Trick and millions of times outside of it. But you can't bring someone back to life. Sylvie has no family, not since her brother hung himself so she could live instead of survive. But I'm convinced that her brother had killed her when he hung himself. Sylvie's one purpose in life is to bring to ruin the people who contributed to her brother's suicide. She isn't living like Morgan wanted her to. I don't know what she'll do once this game is over.

Hold the phone! When I met her, she in fact called me Morgan. She had never met me before so I assume I only resembled him. But after hearing her story in Part Three, I knew that this resemblance was more than skin deep. As the Confidence Trick went on, I learned to read others, to not blindly trust everyone I see, but I still held the same virtues that I held when I got that note 11 weeks ago.

I want no one to leave in debt to the Confidence Trick. Sylvie wants revenge against Wilma. Wilma wants to beat her to bring her life to the way it was before Sylvie came into her life.

It's time to confront Wilma Schilling about her feud with Sylvie.

**15:05  
><strong>**Round 11, Target: 42, Schilling, Black, Montaigne and Milton have one life each. Andrews, Ijima-Schlossmacher and Hongou have two lives each.**

The order of play was announced. Luke, Wilma, Hongou, Grace, Sylvie, myself and Ijima. Luke plays 3 and I stop the game.

"Wait, Wilma. Before you make your move, Let me ask you something."

"Sure, go ahead, but that won't change the game one bit. I'm about to beat Sylvie and take revenge."

"That's the thing. You only want Sylvie's head, and possibly mine. How about this? I ask that you pay off any debts owed by the other seven players, including the three sequestered. You did this once before."

"Yes, I remember. I paid off the three players who would not get to move on to Part Four."

"See, you're capable of generosity. You can just pay everyone else off if you do indeed get both winners. The best result that can happen without any money changing hands after the game is two players each owing four million dollars and the other eight winning a million each. I'm prepared to owe four million dollars, so I ask that you pay off everyone else if you win."

"Yes. I can do that. I seek to harm no one else as a result of this game."

"How did your opponents in the Intermission turn out?"

"A benefactor had played against them and only wanted to play the game." Wilma sighed. "It was the greatest relief I had experienced in the Confidence Trick up to this point. All I wanted was vengeance, but I never wanted anyone else to be harmed. Every game except for the first one involved more than two players, so others would definitely be involved."

"Well, then. We'll all hold you to paying off the other players. But if we win, we'll make sure no one leaves with any debt. Not even you, not even Grace, not even Sylvie."

"Then... let the game continue." Wilma makes her move, 2.

I believe we have secured the safety of the other players, win or lose. Wilma is capable of generosity. She's lost everything because of Sylvie and wants her to pay, but she doesn't want anyone else (except maybe me) to sufffer because of her. I trust that she'll pay everyone else off if she wins. And thus, the game continues.

The first lap around the table finishes with plays of 3, 2, 3, 1, 3, bringing the count to 17/42. Luke begins the second lap with a 1. Wilma and Teruaki play 3 and 1 respectively. Grace decides to play 3 despite 0 being safe at this point in the round, bringing the count to 25/42. Sylvie sees that it's still safe to play 0, and does so. I play 2 to bring the count to 27/42. The only way for Sylvie to face a full count is for everyone else to play 3. Luke is on our side and no two players in a row can play 3, meaning that Sylvie is safe for the time being. Soujirou had played 3 in his last turn and I just played 2, meaning that this time, he can only play 1 or 0, he plays 1 to bring the count to 28/42.

Luke plays 2 to bring the count to 30/42. The team of Wilma, Teruaki and Grace have played 3, 1 and 3 respectively. The highest they can play as a team is 7, requiring a 2-3-2. But Luke has just played 2, meaning that the highest they can play is 6 to bring the count to 6 short. The lowest that they can play with none of them playing 0 would be 4, requiring a 1-2-1. That would make the count 8 short and leave us to win the round. With three players between Grace and Wilma, they might have to do something drastic. In the end, they play 1-0-1. The count is now 10 short. Either Luke or Soujirou will play 3, If Sylvie and I play 2-3, that would make the count 2 short minus whatever is played by whoever does not play 3 between Luke and Soujirou.

The count stands at 10 short, Sylvie, Luke and I can play a maximum of 8. If Soujirou plays 0, then Wilma, Teruaki and Grace can 0-2-0 their way to victory. We'll have to play low this turn. Sylvie had played 0 in her last turn and Grace just played 1, leaving her to play either 2 or 3. She plays 2 to make the count 8 short. I play 1 to keep from playing 0 at this late point in the round.

The count now stands at 7 short. The next five are Soujirou (1), Luke (2), Wilma (1), Teruaki (0) and Grace (1). Soujirou has three options:

**Option 0**

If Soujirou plays 0, then the count stays at 7 short. Luke can play either 1 or 3, setting the count to 6 or 4 short. At best, I'll lose the round, but still have a life left.

**Option 2**

If Soujirou plays 2, then the count becomes 5 short. Luke can play either 0, 1 or 3, making the count 5, 4 or 2 short. Luke plays 0, the opponents 3-2-0 their way to a four against two. Luke plays 1, they 3-1-0 to the same result. Luke plays 3, they 0-2-0.

**Option 3**

If Soujirou plays 3, then the count becomes 4 short. Luke can play either 0 or 1 making the count 4 or 3 short. And then Schilling and company either 3-1-0 or 2-1-0.

Soujirou has a way to guarantee a win for his team. The round ends with Sylvie's defeat. Soujirou plays 3, Luke plays 0 and Wilma and team play 3-1-0.

"Sylvie Montaigne has lost this round. She has been eliminated. Please show any vouchers bearing her name, these will be voided, as she is no longer in contention to win. We will take a five minute break before the next round starts. Miss Montaigne, you will be sequestered for the remainder of the game. Other players will join you as they are eliminated. You will be able to communicate and bargain with other eliminated players." Luke and I each have a voucher with her name on it. Both of these vouchers are stamped with the word 'VOID'.

**15:20**

As we exit the theater, Sylvie is escorted from the venue. I don't know what to say about this. I feel like I've failed in some way. But there's still the chance for everyone to make it out of this game debt free.

It's official. Sylvie is out of this game. Wilma wanted Sylvie's head and she's got it now. Her one goal in the Confidence Trick has been accomplished. Not quite. Sylvie can still win money if one of us makes it to the final two. It should be very easy to stamp us out at this point. But my first goal was always for everyone to escape the Confidence Trick with no debt. Win or lose, I'll be happy if this happens. But what about Sylvie? There's no guarantee that she'll be paid off. She'll owe almost 9 million dollars if she gets nothing from this last game. Assuming that everyone breaks even, Wilma and Grace should have about 7 million. The debts owed by Sylvie, William and Daniele add up to about to just under 7.1 million. A couple hundred thousand is nothing against the millions in debt that we faced every single game. We could split this ten ways. But there's no guarantee that Wilma's mercy will be extended to Sylvie or me.

Luke has only one voucher with my name on it. I have two vouchers, one with Luke's name and one with Teruaki's name. If Teruaki wins, his safety will be secured and I'll have 5 million with which to pay off some debts. I have no doubt that Teruaki will be one of the winners of this game. No, they can take the whole pot for themselves and pay off everyone else, even Teruaki. With the safety of the other eight players guaranteed, all that's left to do is for Luke and I to win, however high the odds may be stacked against us.

"So, Dana, how do you know Wilma will pay us off?" Luke asks.

"She's not the kind of person who makes people suffer for the sake of making people suffer. I'm sure she'll pay off her allies, Eagleden and his allies and even you. She's only out for Sylvie and she just took her out of the game. I know you're safe."

"If she won't pay off you and Sylvie, I've still got something to play for. It's four against two and I only have one life left. If we get seated next to each other again, it could be the end."

"It probably already is over, but I have Teru's voucher. If he wins, then at least we didn't come away with nothing. My fate as well as Sylvie's fate depends on how much he trusts that Wilma will indeed pay him off."

**15:25  
><strong>**Round 12, Target: 39, Schilling, Black, and Milton have one life each. Andrews. Ijima-Schlossmacher and Hongou have two lives each.**

We get called back once again to hear the order of play for this round.

"Grace Black..." The first name is called. My eyes fall on Teruaki holding two vouchers in his hand. No... if he has two vouchers with the names of two of his allies, then he has nothing to fear. He'll win money no matter what.

Not only that, but Luke and I are to be seated next to one another for this round. The rest of the order went Luke, myself, Teruaki, Soujirou and Wilma. There's no way I'm going four against one.

The round starts and Grace and Luke make their moves. I have three minutes before I get a warning and another three minutes before I lose the round. Six minutes to make something happen.

"Teru, wanna make a bet?"

"Huh, ... a bet, what are you talking about, Andrews?"

"I got a hold of one of your vouchers. Will you join us if I give you a chance to win two shares of the jackpot?"

"I have one of Grace's vouchers and one of Soujirou's vouchers. I'm already guaranteed the one share I need to stay out of debt. How do you know I won't just turn my back on you the minute you hand me back my voucher?"

"Honestly, I don't." Wilma and Grace smile. "But your safety is already guaranteed."

"Yep, I know that."

"As is the safety of seven other players. But I'm asking you to help out the two who won't receive help from Wilma."

"Why should I?"

"You're our last hope. You have the last chance to help us. If you don't it will be your fault."

"Okay, then it'll be my fault. Let's leave it at that."

"Alright, think of it this way. You can win three shares of the jackpot and save yourself, pocketing 11 million, or you can win those same three shares and save yourself, myself and Sylvie, pocketing 3 million. No matter which path you take, you'll be set for life." A pause... "So, what will it be?" I hand him the voucher with his name on it. My offer can no longer be retracted.

An eerie silence takes over the theatre. 30 seconds... 60 seconds... 90 seconds... The silence is broken by the announcement that I have received a warning for delaying the game. I need to hear Teruaki's decision.

"Okay, you've got yourself a deal. I think we might have a way to win this round." Teru has accepted the deal. I hit 3 and the count becomes 33 short. Teru plays 2, 31 short. There is almost no reaction from Wilma's group, this is the Confidence Trick after all. The alliances now stand at three on three. This is still anyone's game.

Wilma's group play 1, 2 and 1 to make the count 27 short. A team of three can play a total of between 1 and 8, 2 and 8, or 2 and 7. The most reliable method would be to make the count a multiple of 9 at the end of their turn. No matter what we play, they can make the count 18 short, then 9 short and finally 0 short, possibly eliminating Luke and making the game three against two. The next six plays go 3, 2, 3, 0, 1, 0. 18 short. I don't see this until after I make my next move and it's Teru's turn to play. He sees the hopelessness of the situation and with the action on him, he lets the clock run out amid chuckles from Wilma and Grace.

"Teruaki Hongou has conceded this round. We will take a five minute break before the next round starts."

**15:38**

We exit the theatre once again. A third partner has helped us somewhat, but that round depended purely on who went first. That will be the case again if the three of us are seated next to one another in the next round. The target for the next round will be 36. Teru could jump ship at any time, but he's our last hope. I'm at his mercy. We have to win the next round. Grace and Wilma are on one life each. On our side, Teru and Luke are also on one life. We can't plan for anything until the order of play is revealed. But everything rides on this one round. If things go south, I can run out the clock, but that's all the time I can buy. Teru is guaranteed safe, he has Grace and Soujirou's vouchers. Assuming that Luke, Teru and I are all eliminated, only Wilma Grace and Soujirou will remain. Teru will be guaranteed at least one share of the jackpot. $5 million per share minus the $4 million buy-in equals at a minimum $1 million in profit. If things go wrong, Teru has no fear in jumping ship.

What will happen to Sylvie if we lose? What will happen to me?

**15:43  
><strong>**Round 13, Target: 36, Schilling, Black, Milton, and Hongou have one life each. Andrews and Ijima-Schlossmacher have two lives each.**

The five minutes are up and the moment of truth has arrived at long last. The 13th round of this game is underway. The target for this round is 36, a multiple of 9. If the two alliances were seated together, then whichever team goes first will lose unless their opponents are in the second, third, and fourth positions. The names are called.

"Soujirou Ijima-Schlossmacher... Wilma Schilling..." _Yes, that's it, come on! Come on!_

"Dana Andrews..." _Okay, we can still win if Grace plays sixth._ "Teruaki Hongou..." _The moment of truth. Come on! _I enter the theater with Teru behind me, seated to my left. If Luke is the next to enter, then we've won the round and the best Wilma and company can do is have all three of their players on one life.

We wait, only to find that Grace is the next to enter the theatre. Damn, that could have sealed a much needed victory. But with the alliances split at 2-2-1-1, we haven't necessarily lost, but the outcome will be impossible to predict. The target is 36 for this round. Soujirou and Wilma open with 0-3. Next, I play 1 followed by Teru's 2. 6/36. The first lap ends with Grace playing 1 and Luke playing 2.

At the end of the first lap around the table, the count stands at 9/36, 27 short, still too early to predict a winner given the limit of three minutes per turn.

The second lap begins with Soujirou and Wilma playing 3-2. My next play is 3, which is followed by Teru's 1. The second lap finishes with Grace's 3 and Luke's 1, bringing the count to 22/36. 14 short.

The third lap brings more caution to the game. Soujirou and Wilma play 2-1. Now the action is on me with the count at 11 short. The most recent play was 1 and our last play was 3-1. We can't play 1-0 or 0-1, but we can play any total between 2 and 5, that unfortunately leaves too many options to contemplate in the time I have. With three enemies and one ally before we play again, we play 0-2.

All eyes fall on Grace. The count is 9 short and she can play either 0 or 1. If she plays 0 and the action and a full count come back to her, she will have lost this game. If she plays 1, she could face a 0 from Teru and have to play a minimum of 2. In the end, she decides to play 0. Luke plays 3 to force either 0 or 1 from Soujirou.

The action is now on Soujirou Ijima with the count standing at 6 short. No matter what he and Wilma play, we can pass a full count onto Grace and win. Soujirou sees this and rather than lose the game, waits for time to be called. Three minutes later, he gets a warning. Another three minutes later, he loses the round.

"Soujirou Ijima-Schlossmacher has conceded this round. We will take a five minute break before the next round starts."

We've scored an all-important victory, but the game isn't over yet.


	61. Questions, Answers and Questions

**14:55**

We're just one round away from winning this game. If we win this round, the alliances would become our three against their two, a very likely victory. It was only a matter of time before the order of play for this round would be revealed. The target for this round is 33, 6 more than a multiple of 9. If the alliances are seated together, then a team in the 1-2-3, 2-3-4, or 3-4-5 spots would win. We could do nothing but wait for the five minutes to pass.

**15:00  
><strong>**Round 14, Target: 33, Schilling, Black, Milton, Ijima-Schlossmacher and Hongou have one life each. Andrews has two lives.**

We are called back for another moment of truth. This could very well be the last round of the game. The first names to be called are Luke Milton Jr. and Dana Andrews. Nothing has been resolved yet. If Teru's name is the next one called, then we've won. If it's the last to be called, we have another chance, but the game would enter sudden death.

"Wilma Schilling..." Fuck. All that we can hope for is Teru playing fourth or fifth this round. Please...

"Soujirou Ijima Schlossmacher..." Come on... please...

"Teruaki Hongou..." Luke and I take a breath, we still have a chance to win it right here.

"Grace Black." The six of us are finally seated, ready for the round to begin. The alliances are split 2-2-1-1 again for this round. The outcome of the round was once again too far off to predict. But if we can win this round, then we've won the game. The round begins with Luke, who plays 2. I play 1, bringing the action to Wilma and Soujirou.

"So, you've decided to join Mr. Andrews after all, huh, Teru."

"Yep. And I don't regret my decision at all."

"Look at your vouchers."

"Grace Black, Soujirou Ijima-Schlossmacher and Teruaki Hongou."

"Now take those two out of the equation. That leaves me, you, Grace and Soujirou. If you win, you'll have two shares of the jackpot. If Grace or Soujirou wins alongside you, you'll have three shares of the jackpot. After paying back the $4 million buy-in, you'll have $11 million. If you join us, it'll be four against two. If you join us, once Mr. Andrews and Mr. Milton are out of the picture, I'll step aside from this game and you'll have $11 million.

"Well then count me in."

"Teru! We're just one win away! There's no reason to walk away!" Even though I say there's no reason for him to turn on us, the proof is right in his hands. If he wins, he'll win $6 million plus another $5 million if Grace or Soujirou wins with him. I can't sit up straight. I've just had a lifeline yanked from my reach so heartlessly. We were completely at the mercy of Teruaki Hongou and everyone here knew that. All is not lost, but we're no longer in full control of our fates. The next time my turn comes around, I can do nothing but wait for time to be called. The round would end and we would all be on "equal" footing with only one life each.

After the official announcement that I had conceded the round, there are five minutes to convince Teru to come back to our side. But there's no reason for him to come back to our side now.

**15:08  
><strong>**Wilma Schilling**

We've won! With Teru on our side, it's four on two. I still can't believe this is happening. I thought this was a dream. I just couldn't believe that the moment arrived when I could take revenge against the woman who took everything from me. I thought she was out of the picture when she got locked up. My worries had been laid to rest for those 30 months. And the day those 30 months were up, I started to worry about another scheme from her. 78 days later, here we are. But it's not over yet. We need to hear the order of play for the next round. If Dana and Luke are seated next to one another, then one of them will exit the game, if this turns out not to be the case, it will still be a very easy victory.

"We're almost there, Wilma."

"Right you are, Grace. But it isn't over. We still need to take out those two. Once one of them goes down, the other will fall and then we win. Nothing to do but wait for next round's order to be announced."

**15:13  
><strong>**Round 15, Target: 30, All players have one life each.**

We eagerly await the announcement of the order of play for this round.

"Grace Black... Luke Milton Jr. ... Soujirou Ijima-Schlossmacher... Dana Andrews... Teruaki Hongou... Wilma Schilling."

The six of us take our seats and the round begins. The target for this round is 30. Grace opens with 3. Luke replies with 1 and Soujirou plays 2. Dana refuses to look at anyone. He presses the 3 button. Teru and I play 2 and 1 respectively, bringing the count to 12/30.

The second cycle around the table begins with Grace playing 2 and Luke retreating by playing 0. Soujirou plays 3 and Dana, still refusing to look at anyone, plays 1.

The count is 18/30, 12 short. Teru, myself and Grace are next to play. We converse and conclude that the best course of action is to make the count 9 short. We end up playing 0-2-1.

Luke tries to get Dana's attention, but his efforts prove fruitless. He plays 3 to bring the count to 6 short. Soujirou plays 0 and Dana plays 3, bringing the action back to us with the count at 3 short. We finish with 2-1-0 and Luke is out of the game. We're one round away from winning this game. All this time, these 32 plus months. I had lost it all, but now I'm moments away from vengeance.

"So, this is the moment you've been waiting for, isn't it, Wilma."

"Oh my. It's almost over. I can sleep well tonight. Thank you, Grace." With the end ever so close, my emotions begin to take over my thinking. I can do nothing but fall into Grace's arms and cry into her shoulder. I can see the light at the end of the tunnel. I thought my life was over before the Confidence Trick. I chose to pursue revenge, and it paid off in the end. There was still one more obstacle though, one more opponent. And he's now trying to appeal to me, desperation in his eyes, but nowhere else.

"Wilma! Please! You're just gonna leave Sylvie as the only loser in this game?! I know she's ruined your life, but can't you find it in your heart to forgive her?! Haven't you had enough? First, Morgan hangs himself and now Sylvie, I don't know what'll happen to her, she owed almost 5 million coming in."

I look him straight in the eye. "I know I've ruined the lives of a brother and sister. I'll never be able to wash that blood from my hands. But I know people who had their lives ruined by Sylvie, or Jeanne or whatever name she goes by. About half a dozen of my friends lost everything because of her, four of them eventually gave up on life. And you expect me to forgive her?"

"Yes, I will be honest and say 'yes'."

"Please, that'll never happen. She ruined at least a half dozen lives. We led her brother to suicide, yes, but is it really fair for her to lead four others to suicide? That's why the principle of 'an eye for an eye' exists."

"But at the rate things are going, this cycle of revenge will never end. If no one finds it in their heart to forgive..."

"I've had to atone..., I've had to ask for forgiveness..., I've had to earn that forgiveness..., There were no guarantees that I would just earn that, I had to atone for what I did to them. In the end, one way or another, everyone from whom I took money was paid back in full. I still have less blood on my hands than Sylvie does."

"I don't care about that. I've learned to forgive without condition. You don't need to do anything for me to forgive you."

"Well, different people run their lives in different ways. I see no reason whatsoever to pay off Sylvie's debts. Once this game is over, Sylvie will be the only one who owes money to the Confidence Trick and I'll walk away a happy woman."

"What if I told you that's exactly how she wanted this to end?"

"If she's happy with that, then she's accepted her fate."

Our exchange is interrupted by the long awaited announcement.

"Attention players, please gather as we announce the order of play for Round 16."

**15:23  
><strong>**Round 15, Target: 27, All players have one life each.**

The order of play for this round was about to be revealed. No matter what, it would be an easy win for us. Dana ended up in the second seat for this round. The round opened with Soujirou playing 3 and Dana playing 2. We respond with 3-0-1-2. Dana replies with 3 and we finish with 2-3-2-1. All the while, we ignore his pleas for Sylvie's debt to be cleared. With the count at 22/27 and his most recent move being a 3, he sees the hopeless situation and plays 2. This allows us to finish him with 0-2-1-0. Now, Dana is out of the game and there are only four of us now. With the game effectively settled, all that's left to do is concede this round. Teru will have two shares of the jackpot. Overall, we have six shares of the jackpot in our control. 30 million dollars. Once the order of play was revealed and the round ready to start, all that remained once my turn came up was to formally resign from this round. This took six minutes by rule. I took this time to thank my partners in this game.

"Grace, we were bitter enemies in Part Three, and Part Five. Sure, we became friends in Part Three, but we were only bound by money. You can buy cooperation, but you can't buy friendship. I only earned your friendship with a story of how I lost it all and only because the same happened to you."

"Soujirou, Teruaki, we were complete strangers before today. And then you both heard my story one way or another. Both of you could have gone either way. You could have joined any other group."

Soujirou put his two cents in. "Only four of us could be in one group. We chose a group and saw if we could get needed majority of players to win. Somehow, it turned out to be the right choice for all of us."

I slump into the chair and sigh as Denisov announces the warning. In three minutes I will time out and there will be only three. I had three minutes that I didn't know what to do with.

"I'll be damned if Sylvie finds a way to clear the millions she owes."

"So, who do we pay off?"

"We promised to pay off four of the other six players. Kawahara, Eagleden, l'Aquila and Milton. We don't know how much Kawahara and l'Aquila owed going into the game, but we should have enough left over to cover that."

"What about Dana? I know you'll just leave Sylvie to pay what she owes, but Dana came into this game owing nothing while Sylvie came in owing almost 5 million."

"An excellent idea. But anyone else who happened to have won in this game can't be stopped from just handing their money to Sylvie. We can't account for everything until we know everything. Right now, I just want to not do anything for two minutes. It's been a long 11 weeks."

I close my eyes and the events of the last three years play in my head. Since the day Jeanne l'Argent revealed herself, I had no faith in humanity, I spent the next 30 months alone. I wanted nothing to do with anyone. At first, I didn't leave my house, but after about six months, I started to go back out in the world again, albeit with the memory of having my life savings stolen for charity. I started to open up, tried to get in touch with some of the others who lost their savings to l'Argent, I found out that of the six who also invested with l'Argent, four of them killed themselves. I was about ready to give up as well. I contemplated suicide for almost two years. I just went through the motions, but I had dozens of chances each day to end it all. The day finally came when I was ready to leave the world behind and then, I found a note. Something about something called the Confidence Trick and a picture of a familiar face.

Time ran out before I could get to the start of the Confidence Trick. I had run out of time to move and was eliminated. Denisov gave the generic announcement of another eliminated player and then there were three.

"I'll see you guys later." As we left the theatre and I was escorted out of the venue by CT officials, I felt a sense of accomplishment at long last. Sylvie Montaigne would be out of my hair forever. But still, I would have to confront her one last time. In the end, I was the winner.

As I am led out of the venue, I can only think about everything I've been through in the last 11 weeks. I think about all of the wrongs I have committed and how they were made right. Every single game, I had won money. Every single time I won, I knew that I would need the money later on. But I felt guilty, I felt as though I had sentenced someone to death. But I knew that I would have a chance to pay back those debts later. And because of that, I have no more loose ends to tie up. All that remains is one final confrontation with Sylvie Montaigne.

**15:30  
><strong>**Sequestration Area  
><strong>**Sylvie Montaigne**

The Confidence Trick was over for me. I entered the game owing almost 5 million dollars and acheived the worst possible result in this game, leaving me with a debt of 9 million dollars. Meanwhile, Dana has also acheived the worst result and owes 4 million. I know that Schilling will uphold her promise to pay off any debts that the other players have incurred, but she said nothing about Dana. I don't care if I owe five, ten or a hundred million dollars, I can't say that I have anything to go back to. When the Confidence Trick started, I had just been released from prison the day before and been given an apartment in Berwin. It was 18:45 and barely less than 24 hours after my sentence was completed when I found a note on a table.

You have gained the right to participate in the Confidence Trick. This opportunity is presented to only one in every 50,000 people. By reading this note, you have signified your irrevocable interest in this event. You could make hundreds of thousands, perhaps even millions of dollars over the course of this Confidence Trick. At 20:30, a limousine will take you to the site of what could be the turning point of your life. We wish for your success!

-CTI

The timing of this note indicated straight away that this note was meant to be there. I was to play these high stakes games in something called the Confidence Trick. I knew this phrase all too well. An attempt to defraud after gaining trust. That's what a confidence trick is. This event was billed as _the_ Confidence Trick. I knew right then that I had something to do with this and went through all of this trouble to find out exactly what that is.

"Hey, ... Sylvie..." Dana is still tense, the game may be over for us, but it certainly was not over. Would Schilling keep her promise? I expect Dana to ask that exact question. "So, we've lost. We've lost as much as we could to this series of games. But every million lost in this game is a million gained by someone else." And then reality sank in. Dana now owed 4 million dollars. Neither of us has any money on hand, nor any money won from this game. We both acheived the worst outcome, leaving no way for me to take on his debt. I don't know how to reply to his last statement. I'm just lost. I inhale... and sigh.

"Dana, I just need to lie down for a few minutes." Dana can only respond affirmatively, even though he can see that I'm misty-eyed. He doesn't want to do anything to upset me further and leaves me to walk to the nearest corner and lie down on the floor. Once I close my eyes, all the background noise disappears. For a minute, only my own heartbeat and breathing are audible. I just want to leave this world, if only for a while. Why am I here? Why did I go though all of this? Will I never find the answers I was looking for?

**Author's note: Argh, That took forever! My schedule just didn't leave as much time as I wanted to write this. The game is just about over, all that remains is the aftermath. Why was the Confidence Trick started? Who was behind the whole charade? These questions will be answered. We're almost at the end.**

**I appreciate all of you who have stuck by me and read this story. Remember, this is not the end. Well, it kind of is, but life goes on and we'll see how life went on for Dana, Grace, Sylvie, Wilma and everyone else. **

**Once again, I am not dead. You could say that this story has a hand in keeping me alive and well. Until next time, readers. **_**-66sixx**_


	62. Second Chances

**Wilma Schilling  
>Outside Sequestration Area<br>15:32**

I walk inside to the six others who were eliminated over the course of this game. The Confidence Trick was over. By the time I reached the sequestration area, the last round of the game had started two minutes ago. The game is set to end in a few minutes.

Dana sighed and walked over to me. Normally, I would avoid contact with him unless that contact was to be hostile. But the games were over, so I took the time to listen to him.

"In this game, you promised to pay off the debts of all of the other players."

"Yes, I did."

"Do you intend to keep that promise?"

"Yes, I do. There's nothing left after this game, so this is my last chance to tie up any loose ends. I also intend to pay off your debts as well."

"I can't take that. If you pay off my debts, you have to pay off Sylvie's debts as well."

I sigh. "I just can't do that."

"Why can't you just forgive her?"

"You always ask that question, and you refuse to believe my answer. Sylvie has done more than I can forgive her for. She'll be the one and only loser of this game and whatever she does after that is of no concern to me. I don't even care if she gets the money back in some way after this is done. I've had my vengeance."

"I'm not surprised that that's what the last 11 weeks have meant to you. But she could be back for you. Have you heard about something called the Cycle of Revenge?"

"I've heard of it."

"Then you know that this Cycle of Revenge will continue until someone decides not to pursue vengeance. She'll just come after you until the day she dies or until the day you die. Do you want that hanging over your head for the rest of your life?"

"I don't care about that."

"Oh, so you don't care about someone trying to ruin you for the rest of your life."

"We've been at each other's throats for this long, I don't see anything to gain from ending this feud. She can come after me if she wants to. I don't think the Confidence Trick will ever really end for her."

Dana hung his head, knowing that my mind was made up. Sylvie Montaigne would be the one and only loser of this game. Everyone else would return to their normal lives with any money they gained over the course of the Confidence Trick.

**Sylvie Montaigne  
>15:36<strong>

I open my eyes once again. The first thing I see is the ceiling of the Sequestration Area where we had only a few minutes to stay. The second thing I see is Dana hanging his head and Schilling sitting next to him. Dana has tried and failed to convince Schilling to forgive me. It just can't happen. All of us know that I've done something unforgivable. I knew that what I did was irredeemable. I knew it when I started the scheme. I knew that I was taking people's life savings from the start. I only cared about revenge, vengeance. I didn't care about what happened to me after that. I don't care what happens to me now. My goal in life has been achieved. I knew that it wouldn't bring Morgan back to life, but I wanted closure. I wanted vengeance. I don't care what happens afterward. I stand on my feet and walk over to Dana and Schilling.

As I approach them, Wilma Schilling turns her head toward me.

"Congratulations, Ms. Schilling." Just as she extends her arm to shake my hand, another announcement relating to the Confidence Trick is made.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, the Grand Finale has ended. Soujirou Ijima-Schlossmacher has lost his last life, leaving Grace Black and Teruaki Hongou as the last two players in the game. They will receive 5 million dollars. In addition, each of the three vouchers bearing each of their names will be worth 5 million dollars. Any players holding winning vouchers should report to the checkout station to claim their winnings. This is the last chance to settle any debts owed to the CTI."

**Checkout Station  
>Three minutes later<strong>

This is where everyone's debts will be settled. All ten of us have gathered to collect our winnings or clear debts. One at a time, through several exchanges, everyone's debts were cleared except those owed by Dana and myself. Before anyone could say anything else, I told Dana what was on my mind at that moment. .

"I don't care about anything, just take the money. They promised to pay off your debts as well."

"What about you? Why should you not have your debts paid?" He still expects Schilling to offer me unconditional forgiveness. That is a part of his character, who can blame him?. But no matter how much he begs and cries, it just won't happen.

"There's no reason for that. I don't have anything to look forward to after the Confidence Trick. I've had no family for over two and a half years, I have no one to come home to."

Dana Andrews has helped me as far as he could in this Confidence Trick over these last 11 weeks. He has gained the trust of any opponents we faced, I am not afraid to admit that I wouldn't have come this far without him. But there still is the question of who was behind it all. Who formulated this gambling tournament? Who came up with the games? The rules? The stakes? Who came up with it all?

"We've been through so much together, Sylvie. We were complete strangers before this whole thing started. But you've helped me mature. I honestly don't know where I'd be if you weren't here." Dana must have developed these feelings for me since he met me. I thought he was my brother Morgan, back from the dead. "I want to help you, but you're just throwing yourself out there to get shot! You've found ways out of situations that were much worse! Why are you just giving up?!"

"I've said it before. I have nothing to live for after this is over. Once I find out why all this even started, my life will be complete."

"What the..." Dana sighed. He was about to make one more attempt to convince me to try and find a way out of this hole.

"Ms. Montaigne, we have a message for you. Follow me. Mr Andrews, you are free to join her." Denisov comes out of the blue to tell me this. This might be about who was behind the Confidence Trick, I follow Denisov upstairs, Dana following me. This concerns him as well, he doesn't know what I'll do once this is truly over.

**15:45**

As the three of us step inside the office, we see three people seated at a table, plus one standing on the other side of the room. Schilling? What's she doing here? Did this concern her as well? Her guess was as good as mine as to why she was called here. Perhaps she was looking to answer the same question as I was. Denisov takes his seat.

"Miss Schilling, I think you might have an idea as to who we are." Schilling raises a brow. These four are complete strangers to her. "Didn't think you'd remember us." Denisov smiles. "Alright, does the name... Sasha Katin sound like a name you would know?" The color left Schilling's face.

"Katin? No... you can't be... Katin killed himself! He's dead!"

"Aleksandr Yevgenich Katin." The man confirms his identity by reciting his full name. I remember a Katin. He gave me three million dollars before I killed l'Argent. I can still go back to the day I revealed myself and pick out his anguished face from the crowd. And here he is standing in front of us.

"I have to congratulate you. You faked your death so you could start the Confidence Trick." I say. "You were not acting alone. The three sitting with you were also in on this."

"Correct, Miss l'Argent." Another man enters the conversation. "Do you remember the name Kim Hyeonju?" The name rings in my ears. Kim Hyeonju was another investor who lost money to me.

"I do indeed.."

Hyeonju laughs and turns to Schilling. "Wilma, what reason would we have to kill ourselves when we have a chance, small though it may be, to find a way to get that money back. Even the smallest of chances is better than no chance at all."

Emotion overwhelms Schilling, but the only evidence of that is a couple of tears that drop off of her face. She thought she had lost four of her colleagues and friends over the 30 months before the Confidence Trick. And here they are in front of her. Katin, Kim, Darja Schmidt and Jason Treviño. And it just happens that Schilling and I find ourselves on the same page, like that happens every day.

"Was this all an attempt at revenge against Sylvie?"

"It can't be anything else, can it?"

I begin a slow clap "Good job, Mr. Katin. Good job to you all. May I ask what you were trying to gain from the Confidence Trick, besides revenge of course?"

"You'll be surprised to hear that the only other purpose that this Confidence Trick served was in fact to test human nature. People have no problems doing that small favour that they do for someone they know every single day. But with large stakes, no repercussions, and no familiarity, there is no reason not to take advantage of the huge sums of money sitting right in front of you. Just what will people do? Are they willing to throw someone under the bus when it means millions of dollars and no fear of retribution. Of course, they might not be at first, but that will change when they see that others are willing to take their shot at millions. Think of it as a game of life and death, only without the death, just wealth and debt awaited the players."

With Katin's pause, my turn in the exchange comes up. "In these games, the winning players had the opportunity to walk away from any future games in exchange for half of the profits from the most recent game. The risks of playing on were enormous, but it's not as if the house cares. Some of these games were designed for the house to always break even. Profits from the Confidence Trick came from the "exit fees" needed to leave the Confidence Trick. Indeed, some of the games took back less than what they loaned out, an apparent loss for the CT, but these games had rules that allowed the house to make up the difference. I assume this was an effort to minimise risk while maximising profit. With these exit fees, and game rules, you learned from previous mistakes, spreading your risk across thousands of people rather than just one, and held on to your hard earned fortune. Bravo. And you say that this was also an attempt at revenge against me. Tell me, can you call me a winner? Or a loser?"

"It's written in the books, you owe us 9 million dollars. You are an unenviable loser here." Katin chuckled. "How will you come up with 9 million dollars?"

"You've followed me long enough to know that I don't plan on paying that off. You've followed me long enough to know that I have no reason to."

Katin and the others showed only slight surprise at this. "Well..." he chuckles again. "How can you think about suicide when there are hundreds, up to a couple thousand people who owe us?"

"Beg your pardon?" I ask.

"What are you talking about, Sylvie?" Dana never knew that I have plans to kill myself once this was all over. But it's never over. With that, the floor returns to Katin.

"We've made over a billion dollars from the Confidence Trick, mostly from Part Two's eight figure jackpot. Let me give you some hard numbers. 1518 people are currently in debt. In the case of 738 of these people, they owe seven figures, Out of these 738, you owe the most of them all, owing $8,977,500. With our ten figure profit, we can afford to give some of that up. $200,000 times 1518 equals $303.6 million."

Darja continues. "We'll still come out in the black with over $700 million, even if we deduct $200,000 from the debts of everyone who owes us money. That will completely clear the debts of about 180 people. As for the 1300 people who still owe us money, we four believe in second chances."

"What kind of second chances?" Schilling asks.

"Wilma, as our colleague, you will know in due time." She turns to me. "As our biggest debtor, so will you, Sylvie."

**Author's note: I've finally updated! Since my last update, my schedule hasn't left as much time as I like for writing this story. I had many things due in the last few weeks of the year and wasn't able to get around to this. Much of the time spent since the last update was deciding how to end the story. And with that, the Grand Finale has finished! Now, onto the ending arc. Only one chapter to go! Until next time, readers...**

**-66sixx**


	63. Epilogue: Farewell

"Wilma, as our colleague, you will know in due time." She turns to me. "As our biggest debtor, so will you, Sylvie."

"What are you talking about?" Dana asks.

Treviño takes control of the conversation. "The Confidence Trick never really ends. As long as there are people allured by big jackpots, the Confidence Trick can continue. With the main event over, there are people still in debt and therefore, a need for the show to go on. We will have Encore presentations every now and then, about once a month. All new games, same jackpots."

Treviño has raised some very good questions. But I know that I don't need to ask them because any questions I ask will be answered sooner or later, in fact, some of them already have. Not all of their games can be zero-sum, as there would be nothing in it for them except the thrill of finding out who will win (and any bets they might make against one another). With $700 million added to their pockets in three months, they'll probably feel generous and give the players a chance for all of them to win something. It could be like the games in Part Four where it was possible for all players to profit, but also for all players to lose. Where do they get the ideas for these games?

Treviño continues. "This could be a chance to clear your debts, or a chance to win once more. Newcomers and allstars alike have a chance to win big. Ladies and gentleman, let me introduce you to the Encore." Treviño stands up and shows two envelopes in his hand which hold information about the Encore. He walks slowly and hands one to Schilling. He walks just as slowly to give me the same information that he gave her. Dana looks over my shoulder as I open the envelope. Treviño does nothing to stop him as this information, according to him, will do nothing good for Dana.

**Confidence Trick: The Encore**

_Hello again. Though the Confidence Trick has ended with the Grand Finale, there are certainly people who still owe us money. Our first step toward solving this problem is to cancel up to $200,000 in debt for each of our debtors. Your debts at this point total: __**$8,777,500**__. Be warned that you must pay any debts within five years and we are not above any means to pay off that debt in the event that the debt remains unsettled five years from now._

_A representative will arrive at your house on May 14 with a letter identical to this one. If you are interested in participating in the Encore presentation of the Confidence Trick, all you need to do is return this letter to our representative. Once we confirm your entry as valid, you will be entered into a lottery. 150 people will be selected along with 10 wildcards selected by us for a total of 160 debtors who will be joined by 40 completely new players. The games played will each stand alone. There will be a new game every month and you will have the chance and opportunity to enter each game until your debts are cleared. _

_Once again, if you wish to participate in the Encore presentation of the Confidence Trick, simply return this letter to our representative on their arrival on May 14. You will be informed on May 28 as to whether or not you have been selected. If you are selected, you will receive further instructions. _

"So. It isn't over." Dana mutters.

"It's never over. High stakes make for a good show."

"Well, now that you've found out who was behind this, I think we can send you on our way."

Dana had so much on his mind, but he just couldn't bring any of it to the surface. It was clearer than skies outside that it was over, that this might be the last time he sees me. But there was simply too much on his mind for him to speak. For me however, it wasn't over. I owed them over 8.5 million dollars. I realised long ago that any debt that I incur would be just a drop in the bucket to them. My attempt at vengeance brought on this Confidence Trick. But if I've beaten them once, then I can surely beat them again. I don't know (nor do I care) how many more of these games are in store for me, but I do know that there is a way to take them down once more.

**15:54  
><strong>**Jason Treviño**

The Confidence Trick has paid off for us. I will admit, I never thought that we would get out of that hole that we fell into long ago. I thought it was over for us, that we were washed up, past our prime. It's jarring to watch some Robin Hood story unfold right in front of you when it's your money being stolen. Even though we had lost pretty much every dollar to our names, we still knew how to get money. We still knew how to run a business. Once we got back on our feet, only then could we worry about getting even.

It was two years before Part One when I proposed my idea of a gambling tournament. The one and only factor holding it back was the lack of money we had to finance the tournament. That was when two sisters heard about this idea we had. They had tens of billions to spare and were willing to try out the idea of a gambling tournament. Three months later, the discussions between us and the Keller sisters made progress and we worked out how the tournament would be arranged. It was then that I pulled out various books. I always liked gambling manga because of the high stakes games. _Liar Game_ was notable for the stakes stopping just short of life and death. _Kaiji: Gambling Apocalypse_ is one of Fukumoto's best hits and rightly so, characters, story, high stakes, readers sometimes have to remind themselves that _Kaiji_ is just fiction. We worked out how the tournament was going to proceed, format, dates and all. We threw around and even tested ideas for games amongst ourselves. Once testing was completed and games selected, we just needed money to finance the whole thing. The Keller sisters were more than happy to provide that. Out of the tens of billions that they had, a figure in the $6 billion range was almost nothing. But how could they trust us not to just run off with the money? How could anyone, even with the tens of billions that the Keller sisters had, trust us not to run off with six billion? So, they gave the money, the players gave it back to them and we got the exit fees. Under this scheme, the only trust that could be broken was the trust between players, assuming it existed at the start of the tournament, now called the Confidence Trick. The potential loss of hundreds of millions did nothing to prevent the Kellers from financing the Confidence Trick. They saw it as a show that was the only one of its kind and were willing to pay as much as a few billion to see it. Not that they would lose the money for long, as they got to collect the players' debts, and not that it was a huge hit to their wallets, as they had tens of billions to their name. Preparations, as expected, took a long while, it was almost two years until we were ready to host the Confidence Trick.

We watched the whole thing unfold from the office. The Keller sisters were pleased that their money went into such a nerve-wracking show. And it only got better with each new game. The later parts of the Confidence Trick kept us entertained for days on end. It was a good thing that we had spent two years preparing for this gambling tournament that was the only one of its kind. Normal people, high stakes, no repercussions. Of course, if this was so much fun, why do it just once when you can do it again?

Now here we are, just after the Grand Finale, and what a show it was.

"I just cut myself off from the outside world these whole two and a half years. I thought I had no one left."

"Can't blame you. You lost everything, the world was crashing in on you, you didn't want anything to do with anyone." Hyeonju responds to Wilma's isolation. We had tried to get her to join us, but she was nowhere to be found. We knew her address, and we tried to get in touch with her, but none of our letters came back. But that changed when we sent her a letter about the Confidence Trick. It was a long shot, but the Confidence Trick could have something to do with her, she thought. Once Part Three came around and she and Sylvie Montaigne were in the same section, she was certain that the Confidence Trick had some connection to both of them. But she kept her emotions in check until the Quarterfinal, when she revealed her true motive for going all the way to the end.

Wilma breathes a sigh of relief, now that it's clear that her colleagues were still alive and well.

**Epilogue  
><strong>**Dana Andrews  
><strong>**May 7**

It's been two weeks so far since the end of the Confidence Trick, a series of games that tested every fiber of my being. The name implied games of double dealing and deception, but I soon found out what was truly being tested by this Confidence Trick was trust and friendship. It was possible in every single game for all players to at least break even and go on about their lives as if nothing happened. It was possible in some games for the players to all turn a profit.

Of course, players stand to gain more by sacrificing one another and that's what makes the optimal outcome difficult to achieve, an example of the Prisoners' Dilemma. It is always in a person's best interest to throw someone under the bus. Even then, there are people who will do just that to ensure their financial security, and at the same time, there are people who will do no such thing. But some of those people may start to do so when they believe that it was the only way to ensure their safety. It then becomes next to impossible for all the players to come together. But it has been done.

They say that honesty is the best policy. That part about me has not changed because the Confidence Trick was not about tricks, lies or deception. The Confidence Trick was about trust and cooperation and thus I was able to emerge with my character mostly intact. What I did learn from the experience was that I should not be so quick to trust others every time. Were this said before the Confidence Trick, I would have thought that I should doubt every single thing that is said to me. But now I can apply that phrase with no changes to my daily life. No one's noticed that I'm no longer so quick to trust, not even I've noticed.

I still worry for Sylvie. We parted ways only two weeks ago and we keep in touch, but I still wonder how she'll be able to pay off the nine million she owes. I've heard stories about people with six figure debts, but her debt is pushing toward eight. She still says that she has no intention to pay that off, but what worries me is what could happen to her five years from now when she still owes all those millions. They can't just sell her body, it wouldn't cover nearly all of the nine million she owes. Maybe, she'll end up working for them. Wait, she can just screw up, but they'll decide to sell her body to get something rather than nothing. Damned if you do and damned if you don't I suppose. But why does this not faze her? I know it's an easy question but I've never seen someone who just finds nothing to live for. I've never seen someone so willing to make a sacrifice, who doesn't try to claw her way to life if it means someone will die in her stead. Even I've feared for my life and tried to come up with ways for all of us to get out of this Confidence Trick. It just doesn't make sense to me.

I don't want to think about the dangers that Sylvie faces, it pained me to think about Sylvie's situation just now, but sometimes, I can't stop thinking about those dangers. But, how was I able to move on from the Confidence Trick? How was I able to prevent the Confidence Trick from blending in with other aspects of my life? It's been, what, almost three months from start to finish and nothing I do, nothing about me suggests that it ever happened? Maybe I want to pretend that it didn't. I have no debts, that makes it easier for the memories of the Confidence Trick to rot. But what about Sylvie? No, she's safe for now, I don't have to worry today. Today could well have been the worst day to worry about her. Today, I have to register for Fall 2022 classes.

Once registration opens for me at 15:30, I enter into the registration system the course codes for the five classes I will take in the Fall term. One at a time, I officially register for next semester's classes. Each registration is confirmed without incident. As I click 'Enter' to register for my last course, my phone rings. It's Sylvie.

"Hey, Sylvie. What's happening on your end?"

"Nothing, really. I just got a new job."

"Wow, what are you gonna do?"

"I'm going to be a Teaching Assistant. I took online Economics classes in prison and got a second degree."

"Hold it, what school are you going to be at?"

"UMCP."

That's the same school I'm at right now! Is this a coincidence?! "Come again?"

"UMCP."

"Wait... I'm in UMCP right now, I'm a sophomore! I'll be a junior next year."

"What a coincidence. Say, Dana? What major are you in?"

"Econ. Never thought I'd have to apply what I've learned so quickly." Sylvie laughs at this unforseeable coincidence. "What courses will you be a TA for?"

"PSYC301: Biological Basis of Behavior and ECON414: Game Theory." This has got to be a joke. How much more contrived can this get? I never even told her where I go to college. I want to believe that this is just dumb luck but the odds of that being the case are shattering ike glass. We have each other's numbers and would keep in touch regardless of whether or not she gets a job here. That alone is enough to convince me that this is just luck, but just to make sure...

"Do you remember me telling you where I go to school? Before today?"

She is perfectly upfront about this, she would never lie to me, she's never lied to me, not even as a joke.

"No, all you told me was your phone number."

A sigh of relief escapes my mouth. Just so any and all doubt can be banished from my mind...

"Are you sure? You're sure I've never told you?"

"I'm sure."

"Thank you, Sylvie."

_END  
><em>_Confidence Trick  
><em>Author: 66sixx  
>August 28, 2011 - June 29, 2014<p>

**To all readers**:

After almost three years, _Confidence Trick_ is finally completed. Thank you to all the readers who stuck with me through thick and thin. Thank you to all who put up with bad writing, long gaps between updates and other problems that this story had. There were some points where I wanted to discontinue this story, I will admit that. But I continued to write this story in spite of academics, pool, and the most important factor, boredom.

As the author, I had free reign over how the story would take its course. It would be boring to see an ending when you already know what it is. I had to drag myself to the finish line because I was so bored of writing this. But alas, I realised that this is no more my story than it is yours and that's what led me to write an ending that would actually fit the story. I could have given a summary of events after the Finale, but I wanted to show what happens to Dana and Sylvie after the Confidence Trick ends and give the story a proper ending.

This is my first major work and I hope you enjoyed reading it. Over the course of writing this story, I have read your reviews and used them in writing later chapters. I love checking my email and finding that someone has favourited or reviewed my work. It gives me a sense of accomplishment without which I wouldn't have so much enthusiasm for writing.

Now that I'm done with _Confidence Trick_, I'll move on to other things, but I will eventually start the encore series. Unlike the Main Event, the Encores will be their own separate stories and might not feature the major characters of the original story. Keep your eyes peeled and read and review.

_Until next time, readers. _

_**-66sixx**_

_Remember, there is always a next time. _


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